From a quick scan of the room at a recent luncheon welcoming the newest class of Pelotonia Fellows, it quickly becomes apparent that these students are among Ohio State’s best and brightest. They chat about things like genetic mutations and natural killer cells, and they swap stories about how they schedule their classes to maximize the time they can spend in the laboratory.
They come from different backgrounds – like Youssef Youssef, MD, a postdoctoral fellow originally from Syria, and Emma Crawford, an undergraduate student from Canton, Ohio – but they have one thing firmly in common: they are working hard to end cancer. And as recipients of the prestigious Pelotonia Fellowship, the 21 undergraduates, 11 graduate students and six postdoctoral fellows in this latest class will have the resources they need to spend more time in the laboratory.
Since the Pelotonia Fellowship Program’s founding a decade ago with proceeds from the transformative grassroots bicycle tour with the goal of ending cancer, the fellowship has become a highly sought-after award for Ohio State students at all levels of study. Students undergo a competitive application process, akin to the process of applying for a grant from a funder like the National Institutes of Health, and their applications are reviewed and scored by a committee of OSUCCC – James researchers. Recently, the program began offering written feedback for all applicants to help new fellows fine-tune their research proposals and to offer constructive criticism for those whose projects didn’t make the cut.
With three review cycles each year, it’s a lot of work, but as Rosa Lapalombella, PhD, director of the Pelotonia Fellowship Program, says it’s worth it. “In every cycle we look forward to expanding our portfolio because the cancer center is comprehensive; it’s about the potential of having people from completely different disciplines working to create a cancer-free world.”
Improving lives is what motivates incoming fellow Youssef Youssef. After receiving his MD in Syria, he did a clinical rotation at the Cleveland Clinic before coming to the OSUCCC – James to volunteer in the laboratory of Aharon Freud, MD, PhD, while paying the bills with a job making pizzas. He was then matched with a pathology residency. Becoming a postdoctoral fellow and receiving the Pelotonia fellowship means Youssef can focus entirely on his research: targeting TBL1 protein in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. “We have a drug that targets this protein and shows high efficiency in killing cancer cells while leaving the good immune cells unaffected,” says Youssef. “Currently we are working on the mechanism by which this drug is killing cancer cells so we can improve it and move it to the clinical trials phase.” The Pelotonia Fellowship not only looks great on the aspiring physician-scientist’s curriculum vitae, but it frees up other funding that enables his faculty mentor to hire other researchers, leading to faster breakthroughs for lymphoma patients.
In addition to the research requirements of the fellowship, recipients are encouraged to ride in Pelotonia. “It's the least we can do to give back when they are giving us so much,” says Emma Crawford, a senior majoring in biology. The fellowship is enabling her to research melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. She is studying how pigmentation, or the presence of melanin and its derivatives, affects melanoma initiation and progression. “The evidence is showing that melanin could be playing a mutagenic effect in addition to its initial protective role in melanoma. If we can show this trend and determine this mechanism, we might be able to provide treatments that are more specific and effective,” says Crawford, who will ride 25 miles in the 2019 Pelotonia.
Likewise, Pelotonia riders and fundraisers are encouraged to get involved in the Fellowship Program. Says Lapalombella, “When we do the application review process, we always invite ‘High Roller’ riders or others from the community to sit in our meetings. We want them to know how rigorous the process is so they know that every time they donate to Pelotonia, it's a good investment.”
Pelotonia High Roller and 16-year L Brands employee Leslie Paxton has ridden in every Pelotonia since the second one, last year completing the 200-mile ride. She attended the May 16 Pelotonia fellows luncheon to learn about the fellows’ research and give them encouragement. “All the work you are doing gives me hope,” she told a group of fellows, after hearing about their ambitious research goals.
Joe Apgar, chief operating officer at Pelotonia and an 11-year cancer survivor, offered encouragement from the podium as he welcomed this latest class. “The Pelotonia Fellowship Program is one of the things we're most proud of. We believe we're investing in people pursuing their dreams,” he told the fellows. “Support each other, think big, do things differently, ask questions – do everything you can to make yourselves better. You all are going to change the world.”