What is the Hill Day Travel Award?
Each year, the Office of Cancer Research Training and Education Coordination (CRTEC) selects one trainee to join MCC Leadership in representing the Meyer Cancer Center on Capitol Hill as we advocate for cancer research funding to our congressional representatives. This initiative is part of the AACR/AACI Hill Day.
Hill Day in Action
The 2025 MCC Hill Day Representatives on Capitol Hill. From left to right: Cindy Campbell, Elliot Eton, Marysol Chu Carty, Dr. Stephanie Rogers, Dr. Jedd Wolchok, and Dr. Jaclyn Jansen
The 2025 Hill Day Awardees, Elliot Eton (left) and Marysol Chu Carty (right), join Education Program Manager, Dr. Stephanie Rogers (center) to represent the MCC at Hill Day in Washington, DC. The day, organized by the AACR & AACI is an opportunity for our trainees to advocate for sustained cancer research funding with congressional representatives and staffers.
The 2025 MCC Hill Day Representatives on Capitol Hill. From left to right: Cindy Campbell, Elliot Eton, Dr. Jedd Wolchok, and Marysol Chu Carty.
The 2024 Hill Day Awardee, Dr. Andrés Ricaurte Farjado (center), joins the MCC to advocate for cancer research funding. From left to right: Dr. Joseph Osborne, Dr. Andrés Ricaurte Farjado, Kellie Jack.
The 2024 Hill Day Awardee, Dr. Andrés Ricaurte Farjado (left), joins Dr. Joseph Osborne (right) and Kellie Jack (center) in representing the MCC at the 2024 Hill Day.
Congratulations to the 2025 Hill Day Travel Awardees!
Marysol Chu Carty
Marysol Chu Carty is a third-year PhD student, originally from Lima, Peru. She is a member of the Guzman Lab, where her research focuses on gaining a better understanding of the biology of multiple myeloma and exploring therapeutic strategies to improve patient outcomes. Marysol is passionate about advancing scientific discoveries into clinical treatments and is dedicated to advocating for equitable access to research funding and representation in science.
Elliot Eton
Elliot Eton is a fifth-year MD-PhD student in Professor Dan Landau’s lab, where he studies intra-tumoral diversity, which contributes to cancer progression and resistance to therapy. While cancer cells acquire many genetic alterations, only a few of these directly drive disease progression. Elliot specifically examines how these “driver” mutations provide a survival and/or growth advantage to cancer cells. To directly compare normal and mutant cells from individual patient samples and uncover actionable insights, he leverages innovative single-cell genomics methods. He looks forward to a career investigating the causes of disease and translating findings to advance treatments for patients.
What is the Hill Day Travel Award?
Each year, the Office of Cancer Research Training and Education Coordination (CRTEC) selects one trainee to join MCC Leadership in representing the Meyer Cancer Center on Capitol Hill as we advocate for cancer research funding to our congressional representatives. This initiative is part of the AACR/AACI Hill Day.
Who is Eligible?
Any trainee who is mentored by a Meyer Cancer Center faculty member is eligible to apply. This includes graduate students, medical students, postdoctoral and clinical fellows.
Do I need experience with government or policy to apply?
No! You do not need to have experience with government or policy to apply. The awardee will attend a mandatory training session on effectively interfacing with government representatives as part of the award.
What is included in the Hill Day Travel Award?
- Participation in the 2025 AACR/AACI Hill Day on May 22, 2025 (please note, this is an all-day event)
- Round-trip transportation from New York to Washington, DC
- One night of accommodations
- 1-2 hour training session with our Government Affairs team
Applications are now closed!
The awardee will be announced by Friday, April 18, 2025.
The 2024 Hill Day Travel Awardee, Dr. Andrés Ricaurte Fajardo (center) accompanying MCC leaders Dr. Joseph Osborne (left) and Kellie Jack (right) on Capitol Hill.