These researchers dedicate their careers to finding new treatments and cures for people with cancer.
When it comes to cancer research, the road from a hypothesis to a breakthrough can be long and difficult. Even with the world’s brightest minds studying how best to treat and prevent cancer, it can take years or even decades to see results. Despite the challenges of the research process, scientists have persevered, and cancer care has progressed drastically as a result of their hard work.
From Dr. Chemtai Mungo’s perspective, this progress is a stark reminder of why it’s so important to support early-career cancer researchers. An obstetrician-gynecologist and assistant professor, Dr. Mungo received both a Young Investigator Award (YIA) and Career Development Award (CDA) to support her research on cervical cancer prevention. She has witnessed major breakthroughs in her field, such as the use of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as a method for preventing cervical cancer. Her passion lies in continuing research surrounding cervical cancer, and with funding for early-career researchers, she’s able to do so.
In this interview, Dr. Mungo talks about the impact of Conquer Cancer’s funding on her work, the importance of persevering through the research process, and her dream of ensuring equal access to cancer care.
Conquer Cancer: How have your grants from Conquer Cancer impacted your work?
Dr. Mungo: The Young Investigator Award was transformative—it set me on the path to becoming a research scientist when I was still a fellow. Now, in my fourth year as faculty at my institution, I lead groundbreaking work on cervical cancer prevention with multiple publications and additional government funding. Receiving the Career Development Award to continue supporting my lab's research on improving HPV and cervical precancer treatment has been equally important. These awards have enabled me to build the foundation for a sustainable research career
Conquer Cancer: Can you speak to the difficulties that early career investigators are facing right now and the difference that getting comprehensive funding can make?
Dr. Mungo: This is a challenging time for science. As a young investigator, you need early bets on your career to establish the groundwork for larger awards. Foundation funding like the YIA and Career Development Awards enables pilot work that strengthens future applications. With intense competition for government grants, support from Conquer Cancer early in your career isn't just helpful—it's critical. I'm grateful that Conquer Cancer continues investing in early-career investigators when we need it most.
Conquer Cancer: Can you expand on how receiving funding early in your careers supports researchers’ long-term success?
Dr. Mungo: Impactful research is a marathon, not a sprint. These incremental awards enable success by providing what we need most: a research team, coordinators to support the work, opportunities to travel and build collaborations, and most importantly—protected time. As a clinician, you cannot do good science if you're in the hospital 90 percent of the time. You need protected time to sit down, think, and read the literature. That's what these early awards provide.
Conquer Cancer: What about your work keeps you up at night right now?
Dr. Mungo: What keeps me up at night is knowing that if we make scientific careers too difficult for early investigators, we'll see the impact on patient care in 15, 20, or 30 years. The breakthroughs we enjoy today—like the HPV vaccine that could eliminate cervical cancer within a generation or two—came from scientists who worked in this field for decades. When talented young people choose other careers because research feels impossible, we lose the discoveries that will save lives in the future. That's what keeps me up at night.
Conquer Cancer: What gives you hope?
Dr. Mungo: I'm an optimist. Resilience gives me hope. Even when scientific careers become increasingly difficult, we persist because we know our work matters. Khalil Gibran wrote that “work is love made visible”—that's what research is. It's how we use our talents to contribute to a more just world, especially for the most marginalized. As someone from a marginalized identity, this isn't abstract to me. It's personal. That's why I can never give up.
Conquer Cancer: What would you say to the young investigator who is on his or her journey, struggling to get funding, and they're on the verge of giving up?
Dr. Mungo: Persistence. That's the name of the game. For every successful grant, there are often two or three rejections. But nothing is ever wasted— every application makes you better. You're clarifying your ideas, mastering your field, building toward success. There is no failure, only lessons and growth. The world needs your work. Keep going.
Conquer Cancer: What does conquering cancer look like to you?
Dr. Mungo: Conquering cancer means removing the fear of death from a cancer diagnosis. It means safe, effective therapies that help people live long, full lives—and ensuring everyone has access to those therapies, regardless of where they live or their financial means. Equity and justice aren't secondary goals—they're essential to conquering cancer.
Breakthroughs like the HPV vaccine don't happen overnight—they are the result of decades of persistence by researchers who started exactly where Dr. Chemtai Mungo did. Today, the path for young scientists is harder than ever, and we cannot afford to lose the next generation of discovery. By donating to Conquer Cancer, you provide resources like protected time that investigators need to turn a hypothesis into a cure. Support the researchers of tomorrow by making a gift today.