UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Academy
UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, 5115 Centre Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15232
About
The UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Academy is an eight-week program that includes cancer biology lectures, presentations from clinicians and researchers, and tours of a variety of clinical and research facilities. Participants conduct laboratory research in a UPMC Hillman lab with an assigned faculty mentor and post-graduate student. The program also includes oral and poster presentations.
• Ages: 14–18 years old
• Schedule: eight-week program
Cancer biology lectures are presented by a UPMC Hillman clinician/researcher, a biology professor, and a University of Pittsburgh medical student. The program’s mission is to provide cutting edge research and career preparatory experiences to a diverse group of highly motivated high school students who are pursuing higher education and careers in STEM fields, especially research and medicine. The UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Academy was instituted in the summer of 2009. It is an immersive mentored research program for a diverse group of high school students, with daily programming that includes conducting laboratory research in a UPMC Hillman lab with an assigned faculty mentor and post-graduate student, and it culminates with a seminar and reception where scholars give oral and poster presentations. The program has included 9 unique research sites, expanded research opportunities to 69 scholars in 2017, piloted the Cancer Environment, Bioengineering, Imaging and Genetics (CEBIG) site that was later renamed Technology Drive X, piloted the program for deaf students in 2018, and expanded the Tumor Immunology site, which was renamed Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy in 2019.
The program has received major funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) CURE Program, The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF), Jack Kent Cooke Foundation (JKCF), and UPMC, and it was recognized by HundrED for its Pittsburgh Spotlight and as one of its 100 Global Innovations for 2020. Community involvement includes contributions from UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Bayer Material Sciences, and grateful patient families, as well as continued collaborations with various local and nationally based organizations and multiple university departments and research centers. The program has appeared on local TV as part of KDKA’s Kidsburgh segment and on national public radio through The Confluence, and it received over 400 applications in the referenced spring.
Last updated July 14, 2026.
• Ages: 14–18 years old
• Schedule: eight-week program
Cancer biology lectures are presented by a UPMC Hillman clinician/researcher, a biology professor, and a University of Pittsburgh medical student. The program’s mission is to provide cutting edge research and career preparatory experiences to a diverse group of highly motivated high school students who are pursuing higher education and careers in STEM fields, especially research and medicine. The UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Academy was instituted in the summer of 2009. It is an immersive mentored research program for a diverse group of high school students, with daily programming that includes conducting laboratory research in a UPMC Hillman lab with an assigned faculty mentor and post-graduate student, and it culminates with a seminar and reception where scholars give oral and poster presentations. The program has included 9 unique research sites, expanded research opportunities to 69 scholars in 2017, piloted the Cancer Environment, Bioengineering, Imaging and Genetics (CEBIG) site that was later renamed Technology Drive X, piloted the program for deaf students in 2018, and expanded the Tumor Immunology site, which was renamed Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy in 2019.
The program has received major funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) CURE Program, The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF), Jack Kent Cooke Foundation (JKCF), and UPMC, and it was recognized by HundrED for its Pittsburgh Spotlight and as one of its 100 Global Innovations for 2020. Community involvement includes contributions from UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Bayer Material Sciences, and grateful patient families, as well as continued collaborations with various local and nationally based organizations and multiple university departments and research centers. The program has appeared on local TV as part of KDKA’s Kidsburgh segment and on national public radio through The Confluence, and it received over 400 applications in the referenced spring.
Last updated July 14, 2026.
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