The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) is an unprecedented collaboration among the world’s leading researchers, doctors, and cancer centers, all dedicated to a single mission: accelerate the development of breakthrough immune therapies to turn all cancers into curable diseases.
The PICI network comprises research institutions that have made seminal contributions to the field of immuno-oncology for decades, including Stanford Medicine, University of California – Los Angeles, University of California – San Francisco, University of Pennsylvania, Gladstone Institutes, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
By encouraging cooperation, data sharing, and industry partnership, PICI aims to eliminate the intellectual silos that stifle progress by giving researchers the incentive to work together on common goals to turn cancer research ideas into real-world results.
To learn more about Weill Cornell Medicine joining the PICI Network, click here.
Mission and vision:
PICI scientists at MCC are driving ground-breaking innovations in science and medicine that will advance outcomes and promote equity through strategic partnerships across the cancer continuum. By assembling immunobiologists, cell therapists, and population scientists, PICI at MCC ensures cutting-edge science-driven trials serve our community.
Areas of scientific interest:
- Next-generation cell therapy for solid tumors
- Agonist pathways
- Intersection of metabolism and cancer immunology
- Cancer vaccines
- Reprogramming a suppressive tumor microenvironment
PICI Members:
Jedd Wolchok, MD, PhD
PICI Director
MCC Director
Professor of Medicine
Roberta Zappasodi, PhD
PICI Member Researcher
Assistant Professor of Hematology in Medicine
Mohamad Hamieh, PhD
PICI Member Researcher
Assistant Professor of Immunology in Pediatrics
Niroshana Aanandasabapathy, MD, PhD
PICI Member Researcher
Associate Professor of Dermatology
2024 Representation in SciencE (RISE) Scholar
Jee Hye Kang, a graduate student in Roberta Zappasodi’s lab, received the 2024 RISE Scholar award from PICI at WCM with her project “Rational approach for Treg-targeted therapies based on the tumor glycolytic state”.
Jee Hye Kang
Funding Opportunities:
- PICI Representation In SciencE (RISE) Scholar: As part of their Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Program, PICI supports a promising graduate student or postdoc researcher from an underrepresented background working in a PICI-funded laboratory. Click here to learn more about this award.
- PICI Early Career Researcher Awards:
Parker Scholar: to support graduate students and researchers going into their first postdoctoral appointment who will become the next generation of scientific leaders in cancer immunotherapy. Click here to learn more about this award.
Parker Bridge Fellow: supports postdoctoral researchers as they launch competitive, independent research careers. Click here to learn more about this award.
Contact Us:
- Miriam Ferrer Gonzalez, PhD - PICI Scientific Administrator (mif4017@med.cornell.edu)
Miriam is the primary point of contact for PICI-related matters. She connects the overarching strategy of the partnership between WCM and PICI to ensure the implementation and execution of projects and deliverables, manages and develops operational aspects of the program, plans and executes communication strategies, ensures compliance, and coordinates the program budget.
- Richard Nguyen, PhD - PICI Alliance Manager (rhn28@cornell.edu)
Richard supports the team at the Center for Technology Licensing (CTL) at Weill Cornell Medicine and PICI by enrolling PICI researchers, managing intellectual property matters (including confidential information, proprietary materials, invention disclosures, and patent applications), and assisting in the process of reviewing and executing agreements with PICI and with other external partners in collaboration with the Office of General Counsel (OGC), Office of Sponsored Research Administration (OSRA), and Joint Clinical Trials Office (JCTO).
