The NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) selected Bryan Faller, M.D. and Amanda Dinsdale, M.H.A., CCRC as recipients of this year’s outstanding principal investigator (PI) and administrator awards, respectively, at the 2026 NCORP Annual Meeting in Bethesda, Maryland. Additionally, a new award was introduced at the meeting. The inaugural Kate Castro Award in Cancer Care Delivery Research (CCDR) went to Judy Hancock, M.H.A., CCRP.

Dr. Faller, PI of the Heartland Cancer Research NCORP, was awarded the Harry Hynes Award for Outstanding Contributions to Clinical Trials and Community Research for his commitment to providing innovative, appealing, and relevant cancer control, prevention, cancer care delivery and treatment clinical trials to the patients throughout Illinois and Missouri. 

The Harry Hynes award is given in honor of the late Dr. Hynes who established the Wichita Hematology Oncology Group, now known as the Cancer Center of Kansas, and was the founding PI of the Wichita Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP). When Dr. Hynes was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2000, he looked within the NCI CCOP and became a clinical trial participant himself. 

In addition to leading the Heartland NCORP since 2018, Dr. Faller serves as a member of the Heartland Cancer Research NCORP Board of Governors and Executive Committee; is vice-chair of the Respiratory Committee with the Alliance; and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Alliance, SWOG, ECOG-ACRIN, and NRG research cooperative groups.

In support of Dr. Faller’s award, Jane Liu, M.D., medical oncologist and NCORP investigator, Illinois CancerCare, Heartland NCORP said, “Dr. Faller has been a true leader of the Heartland NCORP, bringing together and engaging multiple sites across our region for more than a decade. In addition to his exceptional leadership, Bryan is a highly respected researcher in thoracic oncology whose commitment to advancing cancer research and expanding access to clinical trials has made a meaningful impact on both our research community and the patients we serve.”

Ms. Dinsdale, administrator of the Montana Cancer Consortium NCORP, received the Dorothy Coleman Outstanding NCORP Administrator Award for her leadership and deep commitment to advancing cancer care and cancer research availability to the Consortium’s rural patients. The Dorothy Coleman Award is given in honor of the late Ms. Coleman, former research nurse coordinator at the University of Hawai’i Cancer Center, and long-time cancer research advocate. 

“Amanda exemplifies the very best of an NCORP administrator through her leadership, her unwavering commitment to quality, and her belief in the importance of bringing clinical research to our rural communities, stated John Schallenkamp, M.D., PI of the Montana Cancer Consortium NCORP. “She has helped build and sustain a program that provides patients with opportunities they might not otherwise have, and she approaches that responsibility with tremendous care and purpose.”

Ms. Hancock, CCDR lead of the Cancer Research of the Ozarks NCORP, received the inaugural Kate Castro Award in recognition of her commitment to removing obstacles and barriers to advance the success of CCDR trials and programs.

As an added honor, Ms. Hancock received her award directly from Ms. Castro, who retired last year from her role as NCORP’s CCDR program lead in the NCI Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences. The Kate Castro Award will be given every other year to recognize an NCORP staff member who has made outstanding contributions in CCDR research over the course of their NCORP tenure.

“Judy has the ability to be enthusiastic about a research idea while also explaining the difficulties of implementing the study at her NCORP,” said Ann Geiger, Ph.D., director of the NCI Center for Strategic Scientific Initiatives, and previous NCORP CCDR program lead. “The capacity to remain mindful of both the importance and challenges of CCDR was at the center of Kate Castro’s success in building the program, so Judy is the ideal first recipient of this new award.”