Conquer Cancer Foundation

What Conquer Cancer Foundation does

The Conquer Cancer Foundation is the official philanthropic arm of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), operating as a 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. Founded in 1999, the foundation's mission is to accelerate breakthroughs in cancer research by funding early-career oncologists and physician-scientists through a portfolio of grants and awards, including Young Investigator Awards, Career Development Awards, and disease-specific endowed awards. Grants are awarded annually in conjunction with the ASCO Annual Meeting, where more than $11.7 million was distributed across 480+ awards in 2026 to recipients representing 45–96 countries (figures vary by source and time horizon).

The foundation generates no product revenue; its income streams consist entirely of philanthropic contributions from individual donors, corporate sponsors, and partner foundations. Revenue channels include online donations, monthly giving (Conquerors Community), tribute gifts, workplace matching programs, peer-to-peer fundraising (Unite and Conquer), and major-donor cultivation of pharmaceutical companies and high-net-worth individuals. Named top donors contributing $1 million or more annually include AstraZeneca, Genentech/Roche, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, Novocure, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and the Norman and Ruth Rales Foundation, among others. Notable partnerships in 2026 include co-funded awards with the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy and The Dynami Foundation.

Commercially, the organization operates a small staff (11–50 employees) and distributes content and donor engagement through a multi-channel platform spanning the Your Stories podcast, social media, email, content marketing, and large-scale annual events. Strategic positioning leverages ASCO's global brand authority within oncology to differentiate Conquer Cancer from other cancer charities; cumulative fundraising since inception exceeds $500 million. Leadership is provided by Board Chair Dr. Howard A. Burris III, with governance under ASCO's oversight structure.

Name

Conquer Cancer Foundation

Legal name

Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology

Website

https://conquer.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Conquer Cancer Foundation is ASCO's 501(c)(3) philanthropic arm, funding early-career oncologists through grants and awards distributed at the annual ASCO meeting and supporting global cancer research across 96 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cancer Research Nonprofit Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA), Corporate Foundations & CSR Grantmaking (BPAGAKAC), Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Cancer research funding
• Oncology grants awards
• Nonprofit foundation
• Medical research grants
• Philanthropy fundraising

Headquarters

HQ city

Alexandria

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute through online donations, monthly giving programs (Conquerors Community), tribute gifts (in honor/memory), and peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns.
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Corporate partners including AstraZeneca, Genentech/Roche, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, Novocure, and others provide major donor support. Top donors contribute $1 million or more annually.
3. Foundation Grants: Other foundations such as The Dynami Foundation and The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy co-fund research awards and grants through partnership agreements.
4. Workplace Matching Gifts: Employers match employee charitable contributions, allowing donors to multiply their giving impact.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Conquer Cancer Foundation, the ASCO Foundation, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises philanthropic funds and distributes them as grants and awards to support cancer research, primarily funding early-career oncologists and physician-scientists. In 2026 alone, the foundation awarded more than $11.7 million through over 480 grants and awards at the ASCO Annual Meeting. It also operates donor engagement programs, a peer-to-peer fundraising platform, and a patient/researcher podcast.

Product overview

Conquer Cancer Foundation, the ASCO Foundation, operates as a cancer research funding organization rather than a traditional technology product company. Its core offerings consist of grant and award programs that fund early-career oncologists and cancer researchers, supplemented by the Your Stories podcast platform featuring patient and researcher narratives. Additional services include the Unite and Conquer peer-to-peer fundraising platform, donation processing, workplace giving programs, and educational content. The organization does not offer a unified software platform with modular components but rather a collection of interconnected programs supporting its mission to accelerate breakthroughs in lifesaving cancer research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Your Stories: A podcast featuring candid conversations between people conquering cancer, including patients, family members, doctors, and researchers.

Products and services

• Grants & Awards Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• More than $500M+ raised in support of Research, Education, and Quality programs
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Dynami FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 May 2026Partnership to support the 2026 Conquer Cancer – Dynami Foundation Young Investigator Award providing $50,000 grant to Dr. Shoshana Rosenzweig for invasive lobular breast cancer research. Part of Dynami Foundation's broader commitment including $250,000 catalytic grant to Lobular American Research Consortium and $3M+ across 20+ lobular breast cancer projects.
• Parker Institute for Cancer ImmunotherapycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 January 2026Collaboration with ASCO to co-fund a Conquer Cancer Endowed Young Investigator Award providing $50,000 annual grant to support early-career oncologists transitioning from training to faculty positions. Designed to promote high-quality immunotherapy research with inaugural recipient to be announced at 2026 ASCO Annual Meeting.
• Lobular American Research ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecipient of $250,000 catalytic grant from Dynami Foundation for ILC research, working with Conquer Cancer on the Young Investigator Award program.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Stand Up To Cancer: Fundraising collaborative funding innovative 'Dream Team' translational cancer research. Comparable mission, entertainment-industry donor base, and emphasis on practice-changing breakthroughs.
• V Foundation for Cancer Research: Founded in memory of Jim Valvano, V Foundation funds translational and clinical cancer research via competitive grants to investigators at NCI-designated centers. Closely comparable grant-making model and donor-driven structure.
• Cancer Research Institute: Nonprofit dedicated to funding immunotherapy and immuno-oncology research through grants and investigator awards. Directly comparable on early-career funding model and disease-specific focus.
• Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN): Patient-advocacy and research-funding nonprofit focused on pancreatic cancer, awarding research grants and advocating for federal research funding. Comparable on patient-driven philanthropy and grant programs.
• Lustgarten Foundation: Largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research, supporting both basic and translational research grants. Comparable disease-specific focus and donor-driven grantmaking.
• Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation: Funds high-impact early-career cancer researchers through prestigious Damon Runyon Fellowships. Directly comparable on funding early-stage physician-scientists and producing breakthrough research.
• American Cancer Society: Largest U.S. nonprofit funder of cancer research, supporting early-career investigators and broad oncology research programs. Directly comparable mission and donor base to Conquer Cancer.
• Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF): Nation's largest dedicated breast cancer funder, awarding grants to researchers globally. Overlaps with Conquer Cancer on disease-specific research funding and major-donor philanthropy; BCRF is also listed as a top donor to Conquer Cancer.

Broad incumbents

• American Association for Cancer Research (AACR): Largest professional society for cancer researchers globally, with its own foundation funding cancer research. Broad incumbent with overlapping mission, scientific community access, and grants portfolio.
• National Cancer Institute (NCI/NIH): Federal government's principal agency for cancer research and training, awarding billions annually in grants. Broad incumbent establishing the funding environment within which Conquer Cancer's early-career awards operate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ConquerCancerFd
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ConquerCancerFdtn
• Facebookfacebook.com/ConquerCancerFoundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/conquercancerfoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/conquer-cancer-foundation-of-asco

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Conquer Cancer Foundation