Emerging Leader Award (ELA) — $1M per award; global eligibility

About this program

The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research has expanded its Emerging Leader Award to provide $1 million per recipient over four years and has opened the competition globally to support high-risk, high-reward cancer research. The program is aimed at early-career investigators in independent faculty positions for 3–8 years whose work has potential to fundamentally transform cancer prevention, diagnosis, or treatment. Applicants affiliated with academic institutions worldwide (previously limited to the U.S. and Canada) are now eligible, and the foundation expects to increase the total number of awards in the 2026 cycle.