Cancer Health Equity Award

Advancing Health Equity

The AACI Cancer Health Equity Award was created in 2021 to recognize an individual or group who demonstrates exceptional leadership in promoting health equity at their cancer center. 

Previous AACI Cancer Health Equity Award recipients are Drs. Edith P. Mitchell (posthumously), Amelie Ramirez, Electra D. Paskett, and Robert A. Winn.

  • All faculty and staff at AACI member cancer centers are eligible to submit nominations

  • Nominees must demonstrate a commitment to health equity through cancer center programming and initiatives, outreach, education, or other activities

  • Eligible nominees will be considered based on satisfactory completion of the nomination form, including descriptions of the following:

    • How the individual or group has demonstrated leadership in promoting health equity at their cancer center

    • The impact of the nominee’s work in their cancer center’s catchment area

The Cancer Health Equity honoree will be selected by a majority vote of the AACI Board of Directors. The award will be presented in October during the 2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting in Chicago.

Prevous nominations may be resubmitted for consideration. In the event there is no nomination for the award or no nominee meets the award criteria, no award will be made for that cycle.

February 2, 2026
Call for nominations announced to AACI members

February 23, 2026
Nominations due for all AACI awards

March 6, 2026
Board of Directors to vote on award recipients

March 24, 2026
Notify award recipients by email

April 7, 2026
Deadline for awardee to acknowledge/accept award nomination

April 24, 2026
Deadline for awardee to submit bio and headshot to AACI

Summer 2026
Award recipients announced

October 2026
Award presented during the 2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting in Chicago

Please note: all dates are subject to change.

2025 Recipient Spotlight

John D. Carpten, PhD

John D. Carpten, PhD, is the director of City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center and Beckman Research Institute. Dr. Carpten’s pioneering work in genome science and health disparities research has transformed cancer care, expanding representation in scientific research and advancing equitable health outcomes through strategic partnerships and community engagement initiatives. As an individual and team scientist, Dr. Carpten investigated and published the first genome-wide scan for prostate cancer genes, helped develop the African American Hereditary Prostate Cancer study network, and was one of the first to publish on the genomic landscape of myeloma tumors from African American patients.

Under Dr. Carpten’s leadership, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center is consistently ranked among the top cancer centers in the country by U.S. News & World Report. He was appointed by President Joe Biden as chair of the National Cancer Advisory Board in 2022, and he was elected to the prestigious National Academy of Medicine the following year. In 2024, he was named a Top Diversity Leader by Modern Healthcare Magazine.

Dr. Carpten is a part of a growing national system at City of Hope that includes a Los Angeles campus, a network of clinical care locations across Southern California, a new cancer center in Orange County, California, as well as a specialty hospital that will soon open in that county, and cancer treatment centers and outpatient facilities in the Atlanta, Chicago, and Phoenix areas.

Under Dr. Carpten’s direction, City of Hope conducts more than 700 clinical trials annually, enrolling nearly 6,000 patients. Dr. Carpten’s work reflects his deep personal and professional commitment to justice, representation, and opportunity in medicine and science.