Researcher Stories
Get to know the PhRMA Foundation’s award recipients.
Investigating Insurance Barriers to Obesity Care
Emeka “Elvis” Duru, a PhD student at the University of Utah, is researching how insurance coverage policies hinder patient access to new GLP-1 medicines for treating obesity.
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Searching for Genetic Clues to Chemotherapy-Induced Nerve Damage
Thu Pham, a PhD candidate at the University of California, San Francisco, aims to understand why some cancer patients develop severe nerve damage from chemotherapy while others do not.
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Using AI and Skin Cells to Advance Precision Medicine for ALS
Zizheng Li, a fifth-year PhD student at the University of California, San Francisco, is using an unconventional approach to study amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurodegenerative disease.
Watch NowImproving Existing Antibiotics to Fight Tuberculosis
Mary Nantongo, a PhD student at Case Western Reserve University, aims to develop therapeutics to better manage drug-resistant tuberculosis, which has a tremendous impact on families and communities in her home country of Uganda.
Awardee Spotlight
Kan “Dylan” Li, MS
- Rutgers University
“This award serves as a powerful source of self-motivation. When returning to daily work in the lab, it reminds me that the projects I am pursuing truly matter. Being a PhRMA Foundation fellow strengthens my sense of responsibility and professionalism, and it encourages me to conduct every experiment with dedication and enthusiasm. ”
Studying a Protein That Could Help Protect and Restore Vision
Bushra Zaman, a PhD student at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, is researching how a specific protein called clusterin can help the eye recover after sudden injury.