Philanthropy Newsroom

HOUSTON ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center yesterday honored Kimberly Vanderhorst, MSN, RN, CAPA, and Terri Lynn Dunn, DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC, CPHQ, with the 2025 Brown Foundation Award for Excellence in Oncology Nursing. As the institution’s highest nursing honor, this award celebrates outstanding achievements in oncology nursing, including exceptional patient care and a commitment to excellence in clinical practice.

The Brown Foundation expanded the award to recognize two recipients — one clinical registered nurse (RN) and one advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) — marking the first time both categories have been honored in the same year. Vanderhorst received the clinical RN award, and Dunn received the APRN award.

“We are incredibly grateful to The Brown Foundation for 44 years of unwavering support and commitment to honoring excellence in oncology nursing,” said Kim Slusser, Ph.D., RN, MSN, NEA-BC, CHPN, chief nursing officer ad interim at MD Anderson. “This year’s expansion allows us to celebrate even more of our remarkable nurses — not only our awardees but all of our finalists — whose compassion, expertise and leadership help us achieve our mission every day.”

Finalists exemplify nursing excellence
Vanderhorst and Dunn were selected by a panel of MD Anderson clinical faculty, nursing leaders, patient care administrators and members of a patient family advisory committee. Each awardee received $15,000, a pin and a commemorative crystal plaque. Two additional finalists in both categories received $5,000 each, bringing the total amount awarded to $50,000 across six finalists. Thanks to The Brown Foundation’s generosity and renewed investment, this is twice the number of recipients and cash prizes awarded than in previous years.

The clinical RN finalists include:

• Awardee: Kimberly Vanderhorst, MSN, RN, CAPA, Outpatient Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC), Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU)
• Runner-up: Holly Clark, BSN, RN, CNOR, Brachytherapy, Radiation Therapeutics
• Runner-up: Leonard Pulido, BSN, RN, CMSRN, Outpatient Brain and Spine Center

Vanderhorst is a clinical nurse specializing in outpatient pediatric anesthesia care. Since joining MD Anderson in 2013, she has embraced numerous leadership opportunities, including the role of charge nurse. She has contributed to multiple committees and had a pivotal role in establishing Code Blue Operations at the Proton Therapy Center. Her nominators describe her as someone who fully embodies the healing spirit of MD Anderson, and whose philosophy of care is guided by human connection.

Clark is an assistant nurse manager specializing in brachytherapy in Radiation Therapeutics, where she has worked since 2010. According to her nominators, Clark exemplifies servant leadership and strategic vision as a pillar leader in Shared Governance and a 2025 participant in the Meyers Institute for Oncology Nursing’s Wheeler Nurse Leadership Academy. “To be a nurse at MD Anderson is to stand at the intersection of hope and science,” Clark said.

Pulido has been a clinical nurse at MD Anderson since 2017, currently serving in the Brain and Spine Center. He provides specialized care for patients with complex neurological cancers, coordinates multidisciplinary treatment plans and serves as both an informatics resource and charge nurse. He also is a dedicated preceptor and mentor for new nurses, providing hands-on training and ongoing education to support their professional growth and clinical expertise.

The APRN finalists include:

• Awardee: Terri Lynn Dunn, DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC, CPHQ, General Oncology
• Runner-up: Tomar Foster-Mills, MSN, APRN, AGPCNP, Radiation Oncology Gynecology
• Runner-up: Susy Varghese, DNP, FNP, APRN, CMSRN, Pain Medicine

Since joining MD Anderson in 2009, Dunn has advanced from clinical roles in Gynecologic Oncology to a leadership role as an advanced practice provider (APP) manager in General Oncology. She has implemented nurse navigation systems, expanded clinical trial opportunities for underserved patients and developed mentorship programs to strengthen care delivery. “Nursing is not just about treating disease,” Dunn said. “It’s about restoring dignity, building trust and walking alongside patients and families during some of their hardest moments.”

Foster-Mills is an APRN in Radiation Oncology. Her career at MD Anderson began in 2010 in the pre-operative and post-anesthesia care unit, and she now leads clinical workflows and brachytherapy coordination as an APP lead. A mentor, ambassador and clinical coach, she is known for her compassion and dedication to patient-centered care.

Varghese is an APRN in Pain Medicine, where she has served since 2015. She provides evidence-based care for cancer-related pain across inpatient and outpatient settings, while also mentoring students and fellow APPs. She plays a key role in clinical leadership, research and quality improvement, including contributions to the Enhanced Recovery Program and the Pain Task Force. “Each encounter is both a responsibility and a privilege — one I hold sacred,” Varghese said.

MD Anderson’s elite cancer nursing program
With more than 5,000 registered nurses and the world’s largest cancer clinical trial programs, MD Anderson offers a unique, collaborative environment for nurses to lead in the administration of research and management of cancer care. The institution recently earned its sixth consecutive Magnet Recognition Program^® designation — with distinction — from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the highest honor for nursing excellence. This achievement is awarded to health care organizations that demonstrate quality patient care, as well as excellence and innovation in professional nursing. This designation contributes to MD Anderson’s consistent ranking as the nation’s No. 1 hospital for cancer care in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Hospitals” survey.

In 2023, MD Anderson established the Meyers Institute for Oncology Nursing, a pioneering institute designed to shape the future of nursing by empowering oncology nurses and nurse scientists through specialized education, professional development and work-life well-being programs throughout their careers.

The institute’s focus areas, including the Wheeler Nurse Leadership Academy, are further enhancing the positive environment MD Anderson has cultivated for nurses, who play a leading role in research administration, professional development and technology integration. These transformational efforts will continue to establish MD Anderson as a leader in oncology nursing.

“By creating an environment where our nurses can thrive, we ensure that our patients receive the best cancer care in the nation," said Rosanna Morris, chief operating officer at MD Anderson. “As a nurse by training, I am so incredibly grateful to and proud of our nurses for their continued dedication to our patients and caregivers.”

Honoring a legacy of philanthropy
Herman and Margarett Root Brown, together with George R. and Alice Pratt Brown, established The Brown Foundation in 1951. Since then, the foundation has distributed more than $1.6 billion in grants aimed at charitable public initiatives, with a focus on supporting education, the arts and community service.

In 1982, The Brown Foundation established The Brown Foundation Award for Excellence in Oncology Nursing, formerly known as the Ethel Fleming Arceneaux Outstanding Nurse-Oncologist Award. This year marks the 44th anniversary of the award. Through the ongoing support and continued generosity of The Brown Foundation, MD Anderson honors and acknowledges the vital contributions of oncology nurses in advancing the institution’s mission to end cancer.

“The Brown Foundation has been a longtime supporter of MD Anderson’s mission to end cancer,” said Nancy O’Connor Abendshein, president of The Brown Foundation Board of Trustees. “MD Anderson’s nurses exhibit empathy, compassion and expertise, dedicating their careers to caring for patients during a cancer diagnosis and treatment — arguably one of the most challenging times in a person’s life. They are truly the gold standard.”

HOUSTON ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center honored more than 100 faculty members Thursday night during its annual Celebration of Faculty Excellence awards ceremony, recognizing commitment to cancer research, patient care, professional mentorship and development of the next generation of clinicians and scientists.

“The excellence of these awardees exemplifies the leading standards for which MD Anderson is globally renowned,” said Peter WT Pisters, M.D., president of MD Anderson. “I am inspired by all they do on behalf of our patients, who are the ultimate beneficiaries of their dedication and expertise.”

During the celebration, MD Anderson announced promotions of 68 faculty members to the academic rank of professor, named six early-career Faculty Scholars and recognized 42 Faculty Honorees for their leadership in quality improvement and patient safety, research excellence, community outreach, education and mentorship advancement. Culminating the evening’s festivities, six faculty members were awarded MD Anderson’s most prestigious endowed faculty awards: the Jack and Beverly Randall Prize for Excellence in Cancer Research, the John Mendelsohn Award for Faculty Leadership, the R. Lee Clark Prize and the Shirley Stein Scientific Endowed Research Award.

Jack and Beverly Randall Prize for Excellence in Cancer Research
Created in 2011 by MD Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors (BOV) member, Jack Randall, and his wife, Beverly, the Jack and Beverly Randall Prize for Excellence in Cancer Research fosters innovative thinking and groundbreaking ideas in cancer research and care. This $100,000 award honors researchers and clinicians who demonstrate extraordinary foresight, ingenuity and a commitment to excellence. The prize alternates annually between supporting researchers and clinicians. The 2025 recipient is:

• John Heymach, M.D., Ph.D., chair, Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology

Heymach is internationally recognized as a leading physician-scientist whose research focuses on investigating mechanisms of therapeutic resistance to targeted agents, understanding the regulation of angiogenesis in lung cancer and developing biomarkers for targeted agents and immunotherapy. These advances have laid the foundation for new standard approaches to tailoring both targeted agents and immunotherapy for lung cancer, particularly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) driven by EGFR, HER2, KRAS and RET oncogenic mutations. Heymach and his team have transformed the understanding of lung cancer and how it is treated, ushering in a new era of more personalized, effective therapies for NSCLC and small cell lung cancer, two of the most common and fatal cancers.

John Mendelsohn Award for Faculty Leadership
Established in 2019, the John Mendelsohn Award for Faculty Leadership honors the legacy of the late John Mendelsohn, M.D., the third president of MD Anderson. Mendelsohn inspired achievements in research-driven patient care, directed expansion of clinical and research facilities, and forged a research program focused on translating scientific findings to patient care and prevention. This annual $5,000 award recognizes a faculty member who embodies Mendelsohn’s leadership, scholarship and values. The 2025 recipient is:

• Prajnan Das, M.D., chair, Gastrointestinal Radiation Oncology

As program director of the Radiation Oncology Residency and Fellowship Programs, Das has built a supportive, nurturing environment while promoting the highest level of excellence in clinical training and research. He developed the Structured Clinical Curriculum — a model that has since been adopted by many residencies across the country — and he has launched initiatives such as the Network Education in Radiation Oncology (NERO) series for MD Anderson Cancer Network^® partners. As a clinical researcher, Das has focused on technical innovation and clinical trials for gastrointestinal cancers. He has helped establish national and international standards for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for anal and gastric cancers. Das currently serves as co-chair of a randomized National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program (NCI CTEP) phase II trial evaluating treatment de-escalation for anal cancer and serves as NRG Oncology group champion for an NCI CTEP trial evaluating immunotherapy for microsatellite unstable rectal cancer.

R. Lee Clark Prize
Established in 2016 through the generous support of Jeanne F. Shelby’s estate, the R. Lee Clark Prize awards $5,000 to two MD Anderson faculty members each year — one focusing on clinical research and one in basic science/translational research — who model the dedication to scholarship, service and social responsibility embraced by the late R. Lee Clark, M.D., the first president of MD Anderson. The 2025 recipients are:

• Robert Bast, M.D., professor, Experimental Therapeutics
• William Wierda, M.D., Ph.D., professor, Leukemia

Bast, the basic science/translational research awardee, has made invaluable contributions to MD Anderson and its patients throughout his four decades as a physician-scientist, primarily caring for patients with breast and ovarian cancers. He has conducted groundbreaking research in three areas that present major challenges in the treatment of ovarian cancer: late diagnosis, persistence of drug-resistant cancer cells and tumor dormancy. His pioneering work in these fields led to transformative advancements, improving care for patients with ovarian cancer worldwide. One of Bast’s highest priorities is developing and mentoring scientists and physicians in clinical and translational research. From 2000-2023, he served as principal investigator for several T32 grants to train fellows in medical oncology, and also led MD Anderson’s clinician scientist program, the Paul Calabresi Clinical Oncology Award, which developed the careers of 34 fellows and faculty. Additionally, Bast coordinated MD Anderson’s Physician Scientist Program, which provides up to five years of 80% dedicated time for laboratory-based assistant professors to attain independent funding. Throughout his career at MD Anderson, Bast has trained and mentored more than 70 physicians and scientists.

Wierda, the clinical research awardee, serves in multiple leadership roles: chief of the Section of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL), medical director of the Leukemia Center, executive medical director for Hematologic Services, executive medical director for Inpatient Medical Service and deputy department chair. Wierda’s clinical research expertise focuses on immunotherapy, chemoimmunotherapy and small molecule inhibitor-based targeted therapy for CLL, as well as the assessment of immune response in this disease. His work has led to the development of new therapies for CLL and the discovery of correlations between patient outcomes and specific markers that may predict response. He has overseen the development and execution of numerous clinical trials, many of which have contributed to the approval of nearly all current FDA-approved therapies for CLL, including monoclonal antibodies, BTK inhibitors, BCL-2 inhibitors and CAR T therapies. Beyond these achievements, he has demonstrated exceptional service through leadership in institutional operations, pandemic response and faculty development. Wierda has also mentored numerous medical students, post-doctoral fellows and clinical fellows in research projects and in his clinic.

Shirley Stein Scientific Endowed Research Award
The Shirley Stein Scientific Endowed Research Award, created in 2014 by BOV member Gary Stein and his family, along with Life Member of the BOV Regina Rogers, acknowledges the exceptional clinical research conducted by faculty members with limited project resources. Two awardees — one clinician and one pathologist — each receive $10,000 to assist in generating preliminary data that will enhance their chances of securing larger grants and federal funding. The 2025 recipients are:

• Keith Sweeney, M.D., assistant professor, Anatomic Pathology
• Christopher Young, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor, Neurosurgery

Sweeney’s research investigates rare and diagnostically difficult presentations of breast pathologies, molecular pathways and novel genetic alterations in breast malignancies with the potential for targetable therapy. He collaborates extensively on multiple breast cancer-related research projects and clinical trials. Sweeney’s research is impactful to daily breast pathology practice, including targeted therapy in breast cancer and in addressing mischaracterized unique presentations of disease that can lead to delayed or inappropriate treatment.

Young is a cerebrovascular neurosurgeon who serves as head of the Endovascular Neurosurgical Oncology Program. As a surgeon-scientist, Young focuses on the molecular interface between the blood vessels in the brain and spine, as well as the application of this knowledge for cerebrovascular diseases and neuro-oncology. His translational research laboratory investigates and improves the use of minimally invasive endovascular techniques for diagnosis, such as liquid biopsies for glioblastomas and other malignant brain tumors, as well as an emphasis on tailored treatments.