Deerfield Management and the Deerfield Foundation Announce Third Annual AML Summit and Recipient of American Society of Hematology (ASH) Peter Steelman Scholar Award

Deerfield names Dr. Gabriele Casirati as 2025 winner of ASH Peter Steelman Scholar Award

NEW YORK, Sept. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Deerfield Management and the Deerfield Foundation today announced the 2025 recipient of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Peter Steelman Scholar Award prior to Deerfield's third annual Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) Summit. Deerfield's AML Summit convenes industry experts, leaders, and partners across healthcare to further research on this devastating cancer of the bone marrow and blood.

This year, on behalf of his exemplary academic achievements and contributions to AML research, Deerfield honors Gabriele Casirati, M.D., as the recipient of the ASH Peter Steelman Scholar Award.

Dr. Casirati is a hematologist and instructor at Boston Children's Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He specializes in immune engineering strategies for acute leukemias, with a focus on enhancing targeted immunotherapies and improving outcomes for patients with blood cancers. Dr. Casirati's research has contributed to the development of gene-editing approaches aimed at making bone marrow transplants and CAR-T cell therapies safer and more effective.

"Congratulations to Gabriele Casirati, whose exceptional work underscores the legacy of this award honoring our former friend and Deerfield colleague, Peter Steelman, and his enduring commitment to advancing healthcare," said Ross L. Levine, M.D., Senior Vice President, Memorial Hospital Translational Research at MSKCC and Chair of the AML Summit. "We are delighted to present this award in partnership with ASH, with the hope that it will further support and inspire the development of improved therapies for those affected by AML."

This year's AML Summit keynote speaker will be Ravindra Majeti, M.D., Ph.D., who will share his work focused on the molecular and genomic characterization and therapeutic targeting of leukemia stem cells in human hematologic malignancies.

"I'm honored to join the Acute Myeloid Leukemia Summit, where leading experts gather to tackle some of the field's most pressing challenges. Advancing research in AML has never been more important as we strive to improve outcomes for patients," said Dr. Majeti.

The AML Summit will be held on Tuesday, October 7, 2025 at Deerfield affiliate Cure^®, a healthcare innovation campus in New York City, and will showcase innovative clinical initiatives and cutting-edge research in AML. Additional featured speakers will include:

• Ross Levine, M.D., Leukemia Specialist & Physician-Scientist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Chair of the AML Summit
• Ned Sharpless, M.D., physician, scientist, entrepreneur, and former federal official, serving as Director of the National Cancer Institute from 2017 to 2022 and Acting Commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration in 2019
• Konstantinos Tzelepis, Ph.D., Wellcome Trust Principal Investigator at the Cambridge Stem Cell Institute and the University of Cambridge
• Eirini Papapetrou, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Oncological Sciences, Hematology and Medical Oncology and founding Director of the Center for Advancement of Blood Cancer Therapies at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
• Marina Konopleva, M.D., Professor in the Departments of Oncology and Molecular Pharmacology at the Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center in the Bronx, NY
• Alex Kentsis, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Tow Center for Developmental Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Professor of Pediatrics, Pharmacology, and Physiology & Biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine of Cornell University
• Britta Will, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Oncology (Medical Oncology) at Albert Einstein College of Medicine

About AML
Adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer that occurs when bone marrow generates immature white blood cells that do not develop normally. Types of AML are defined by the maturity of cancer cells at diagnosis and the degree of their abnormalities. AML is the most common acute leukemia in adults. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2025, approximately 22,010 Americans will be diagnosed with AML and 11,090 will die from the disease.  

About the ASH Peter Steelman Scholar Award
Designed by Deerfield Management and Deerfield Foundation in collaboration with the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the ASH Peter Steelman Scholar Award supports exceptional academic research efforts focused on AML and is part of the ASH Scholar Award program. For many researchers, the period between the completion of training and the establishment of an independent career can be a perilous and uncertain time. Since 1985, the ASH Scholar Award program has helped ease this difficult transition by providing support during that critical period required for the completion of training and achievement of status as an independent investigator.

Recipients of the ASH Peter Steelman Scholar Award receive an extensive benefits package from the Deerfield Foundation, including full funding for participation in the ASH Annual Meeting; an annual invitation to and research presentation opportunity at Deerfield Management's AML Summit; an invitation to Deerfield's Therapeutic Innovation Seminars; and the opportunity for ongoing collaboration with Deerfield.

Named in honor of former Deerfield Partner Peter Steelman, the ASH Peter Steelman Scholar award commemorates Peter's lasting impact as a dedicated team member and a compassionate individual who embraced everyone with acceptance and kindness. During his tenure at Deerfield, Peter was instrumental in the creation of Deerfield's academic network, which today spans more than 25 of the country's most prestigious institutions. Peter will always be missed and forever remembered.

About the Deerfield Foundation
An affiliate of Deerfield Management, the Deerfield Foundation is a New York City-based not-for-profit organization whose mission is to strive to improve health, accelerate innovation and promote human equity. Since its inception in 2007, the Foundation has formed numerous partnerships and invested in the advancement of children's health, from clinics in the South Bronx to Nepal. Funds are provided through employee contributions and directly from Deerfield's profits.

About Deerfield Management
Deerfield is an investment management firm committed to advancing healthcare through investment, intelligence, and philanthropy. The Firm works across the healthcare ecosystem to connect people, capital, ideas and technology in bold, collaborative and inclusive ways. For more information, please visit www.deerfield.com.

Deerfield contact:

Julianna Santamaria, Manager, Deerfield Foundation
jsantamaria@deerfieldfoundation.org

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