PCB Retreat Showcases Research and Honors Trainees

Group photo of PCB department retreat attendees standing outside on a sunny day at Wrightsville Beach. Four attendees hold gold balloons spelling out 2025.
Attendees of the 2025 Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology retreat stand outside at Wrightsville Beach on a beautiful October day.

The Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology held its annual retreat in October 2025 in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, bringing together faculty, trainees, and staff for two days of scientific exchange and recognition. 

Five faculty members and eleven trainees presented their work during three scientific sessions, and nearly 60 trainees showcased their projects in a judged poster session.
 

The keynote address was delivered by Donita Brady, PhD, Harrison McCrea Dickson, MD, and Clifford C. Baker, MD, Presidential Associate Professor in the Department of Cancer Biology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Brady completed postdoctoral training in the lab of Christopher Counter, PhD.

 

Celebrating Excellence 

The retreat also honored outstanding research and academic achievements: 

PCB Poster Session where scientists animatedly discuss their work with colleagues in front of their posters
Animated discussion at the retreat's poster session.

Robert J. Fitzgerald Scholars award recognized the most significant first-author, peer-reviewed manuscripts published by students, fellows, and staff research scientists in the past year. Each received a plaque. 

  • Abbie Ireland — Nature (2025) 

  • Matthew Klauer — PNAS (2025) 

Fitzgerald Scholars Honorable Mentions 

Jude Raj animatedly discusses his poster with colleagues.
Graduate student Jude Raj discusses his poster with colleagues.

Fitzgerald Academic Achievement Award Winners 
Recognizing trainees who earned competitive, externally sponsored fellowships: 

  • Nana Acheampong — AHA Fellowship 

  • Katherine Hall — AHA Fellowship 

  • Luke Izzo, PhD — ACS Postdoctoral Fellowship 

  • Michael Aiduk — NIH F30 

  • Margaret Weber Barbier — NIH F30 

  • Michael Caminear — NIH F31 

  • Hannah Thrash — NIH F31 
     

Poster Awards 
Faculty judges selected the best posters from the retreat poster session. Winners included Ajinkya Kawale, PhD; Luke Izzo, PhD; Archan Chakraborty, PhD; Caroline Teddy; Meagan Luck; Beverly deSouza; Lindsay Bolino; Taylor Durall; and Lai Yee Phoon. 
 

The retreat underscored the department’s commitment to advancing cancer biology and pharmacology research while fostering collaboration and celebrating trainee success. 

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