Yin Cao, ScD, MPH, was named a 2026 Fellow of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, according to an April 20 announcement. Cao will use the award to write a book examining why cancers are increasingly occurring earlier in life and how this trend can be better understood, communicated, and prevented.
The recognition is considered one of the nation’s most prestigious honors for exceptional scholarship and creativity. Selected from nearly 5,000 applicants as part of the foundation’s 101st class of fellows, Cao is acknowledged for her leadership in integrating data science with cancer etiology and population health. She serves as a molecular epidemiologist and associate professor at Washington University School of Medicine (WashU Medicine) and is a research member at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
This year’s class includes 223 honorees across 55 disciplines. Edward Hirsch, president of the Guggenheim Foundation, said: “Our new class of Guggenheim Fellows is representative of the world’s best thinkers, innovators and creators in art, science and scholarship. As the foundation enters its second century and looks to the future, I feel confident that this new class of 223 individuals will do bold and inspiring work, undaunted by the challenges ahead. We are honored to support their visionary contributions.”
Cao leads research on why cancers are rising among younger adults by integrating epidemiologic data with biological insights through data science approaches. Her recent work has called for transforming how cancer risk factors are discovered for prevention purposes; she has proposed interdisciplinary frameworks that integrate population research with mechanistic biology to accelerate discovery in early-onset cancers.
“I am deeply honored to receive this Guggenheim Fellowship,” Cao said. “It provides the rare space to think more deeply and creatively about what is needed for the community and to tell a bigger, more connected story — one that brings together science, patients and the public. Our goal is not only to understand why cancer is rising but to change its trajectory so fewer young people develop cancer and more are diagnosed earlier and live longer healthier lives. We cannot achieve this alone, and progress will depend on working together across disciplines and communities.”
Cao now leads a $25 million international initiative through Cancer Grand Challenges—a global team science project co-founded by Cancer Research UK with support from agencies including the National Institutes of Health—aimed at uncovering causes behind early-onset colorectal cancer among younger populations.
Located in Saint Louis, Missouri,Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital was founded in 1999. Its current president is Timothy Eberlein.
