The Vision Forward With the Byrne Family Cancer Research Institute

Now poised to lead the next life-saving innovations in cancer treatment, and with the leadership of Steven D. Leach, MD, the Cancer Center's strategic vision will:

  • Radically expand access to existing and new immunotherapies
  • Pioneer the field of cancer prevention through a precision medicine approach
  • Expand an entrepreneurial biotech ecosystem that rapidly delivers the most promising discoveries to the marketplace
Steven D. Leach, MD, and Surajit Dhara, PhD
Cancer Center Director Steven D. Leach, MD, and Surajit Dhara, PhD, Senior Research Scientist, working together in the Leach laboratory at Dartmouth Cancer Center to bring change to the treatment of pancreatic cancer with new technology.

The Byrne Family Cancer Research Institute will serve as a central hub of research activity for these three critical areas and will be achieved in a two-phase philanthropic investment strategy over the next decade.

The Byrne Family Cancer Research Institute engages the collaborative core of the academic medicine research enterprise by forging deeper connections between:

Powering innovation into impact

We imagine that as Dartmouth Cancer Center – one of only 53 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation – enters its sixth decade, the Byrne Family Cancer Research Institute will make several impactful differences in cancer care within this decade:

Lesley A. Jarvis, MD, PhD and Brian W. Pogue, PhD in imaging lab
Radiation Oncologist and researcher Lesley A. Jarvis, MD, PhD, and Co-Director of the Translational Engineering in Cancer Research Program Brian W. Pogue, PhD collaborate to develop new approaches to imaging that will advance screening, diagnosis, and management of cancer.
  • We will reduce the percentage of people in our region who die from cancer.
  • One or more additional, Dartmouth Cancer Center-created, revolutionary treatments for cancer will enter into clinical trials.
  • Research from Dartmouth Cancer Center will inform best practices in rural cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in our region and across the nation.
  • Dartmouth Cancer Center will be among the top three entrepreneurial cancer centers as measured by NCI SBIR/STTR awards and innovations launched into market.
  • The dynamism and quality of the research enterprise will heighten Dartmouth Cancer Center's ability to recruit talented faculty and researchers, adding to the Upper Valley's economic and community vitality.