6 ways Pelotonia fuels the cancer fight at Ohio State
Rider-funded support backs bold studies, recruits leading experts and speeds progress from findings to patient care.
In 2025, Dr. W. Kimryn Rathmell participated in her first Pelotonia Ride Weekend, completing the 24-mile route. “The energy, generosity and commitment of the Pelotonia community were truly inspiring,” she says. Since her appointment as the leader of Ohio State’s cancer program in May 2025, she also has seen the cycling fundraiser’s impact every day.
Unique in its scale and level of community engagement, Pelotonia has raised $350 million for the university’s cancer program over the past 17 years (not including the 2026 campaign, which isn’t complete yet). “It has accelerated discoveries, fostered collaboration across disciplines and created a culture of innovation that helps researchers tackle some of cancer’s most complex challenges,” Rathmell says.
Here are six ways Pelotonia has transformed cancer research at Ohio State.
Idea Grants
These grants allow Ohio State researchers to test bold new ideas. For example, Dr. Zihai Li, the founding director of the Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology, led a team that studied “exhausted” T cells, revealing a new potential pathway for immunotherapy. Another project led by Andrew Gunderson, assistant professor of surgery, is studying how clusters of immune cells inside tumors may help patients live longer. Since 2010, Pelotonia has awarded 227 Idea Grants worth $35.9 million.
Student support
Through the Pelotonia Scholars program, Ohio State is preparing the next generation of cancer researchers. In 2025, funds supported more than 20 scholars, providing funding, mentorship and hands-on lab experience. These undergraduate and graduate trainees work alongside leading investigators on real-world challenges—from studying tumor biology to advancing clinical trials—preparing them for careers in medicine and science. Pelotonia has awarded 734 scholarships to students from 53 countries and 36 U.S. states since it was founded in 2010.
Recruitment
Pelotonia support has helped Ohio State recruit more than 300 top scientists. Two 2025 hires highlight this momentum. Dr. Jessica Merlin came to the university to lead the new Center for Research Excellence in Supportive Care; she’s an internationally renowned physician/scientist whose work focuses on pain and substance use in individuals with serious illnesses, particularly cancer. Meanwhile, Dr. Timothy Burns, a professor of medical oncology, was part of a team that developed sotorasib, an oral lung cancer therapy.
Statewide initiatives
Pelotonia extends Ohio State’s reach through efforts that connect research to patients across Ohio, supporting prevention, survivorship and clinical trials. In 2025, the organization allocated $435,000 to statewide causes, including Beating Lung Cancer in Ohio, a study looking at the impact of advanced gene testing and advice on lung cancer treatment and survival. It also aims to decrease smoking among smokers with lung cancer and their family members and assess improvements in quality of life among those in the study.
Equipment purchases
Pelotonia dollars fund equipment that powers discovery in Ohio State labs, allowing scientists to analyze cancer at unprecedented levels of detail. These tools support everything from studying immune responses to identifying molecular targets for treatment. One example is the 10x Genomics Visium CytAssist. In 2023, Pelotonia funds helped Ohio State purchase this specialized machine, which transfers genetic information in tissue samples from standard to high-definition slides. Since then, several scientists have used it to obtain valuable data.
Breakthrough drugs
Pelotonia funding is helping translate Ohio State discoveries into real therapies, including new cancer drugs. JBZ-001, a drug developed entirely at Ohio State, has moved into early-phase clinical trials for patients with advanced cancers. Research supported by Pelotonia is also finding new biological weak points in cancer and learning more about how the body’s immune system fights (or sometimes fails to fight) the disease. Since its inception, Pelotonia has allocated $75.5 million to strategic research investments, including $6.3 million in 2025.
The long reach of hope
Ohio State’s Sameek Roychowdhury ’98, ’04 PhD, ’06 MD is bringing lifesaving clinical trials to rare-cancer patients wherever they live.
