Dr. Robert A. Winn, a physician-scientist dedicated to community-engaged cancer research and eliminating health disparities, is deeply concerned about the potential impact of federal funding cuts on scientific progress.

As director of VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, Winn bridges the gap between basic science and community-based health care, advocating for underserved patient populations and equal access to cutting-edge treatments.

“Since 1971, every single race and ethnicity has had an impact on reducing cancer rates. We’ve been able to translate that research to everyone,” Winn said.

According to NIH, spending on competing and noncompeting grant awards was $34.9 billion in 2023, a 4.7% increase from the previous year. Specifically for clinical research, NIH funding was around $18.9 billion in fiscal year 2023. Success rates for new research project grants (RPGs) increased slightly to 21.3% in FY 2023, with an average cost per RPG of $609,790.

Winn joined VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center in January 2020. He served as director of the University of Illinois Cancer Center from 2015 to 2019 and as associate vice chancellor of health affairs for community-based practice at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Science System. Before his time in Chicago, Winn spent 13 years at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and School of Medicine.

“I’ve fallen in love with Richmond, Winn said. “I’m connected in ways that I never thought I’d be. I love the food and the people, and it’s been surprising that I’m so connected to the city.”

He’s received numerous awards and honors, including the inaugural Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI) Cancer Health Equity Award in 2021. He’s also a Fellow of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy and chair of the 2024 AACR Cancer Health Disparities Report.

As he considers retirement, Winn looks forward to mentoring the next generation of scientists as a consultant, without the responsibilities of cancer research.

“My goal is to prepare the next generation,” he said. “I hope that I will always be a resource. I want to be available, but I want to do as much good as possible for now.”

Meet the cancer research scientist focused on health disparities and this week’s Personality:

Occupation: Director and Lipman Chair in Oncology, VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center; senior associate dean for cancer innovation and professor of pulmonary disease and critical care medicine, VCU School of Medicine.

Date and place of birth: Oct. 9 in Buffalo, New York.

Where I live now: Midlothian.

Education: Bachelor’s degree, University of Notre Dame; M.D., University of Michigan Medical School.

Family: Two children, Jamal Winn and Leila Winn.

What is the Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI): We are the only membership association dedicated to academic cancer centers, representing over 100 premier academic and freestanding cancer centers in the U.S. and Canada. We advance the objectives of cancer centers by promoting widespread recognition of our network, educating policymakers and fostering partnerships among cancer centers and like-minded organizations to improve the overall quality of cancer care.

Mission: AACI is accelerating progress against cancer by enhancing the impact of academic cancer centers and promoting cancer health equity.

When and why founded: Founded in 1959, the AACI has a mission to reduce the burden of cancer by enhancing the impact of North America’s leading academic cancer centers.

Location: Roswell Park Memorial Institute in Buffalo.

When elected board president: 2023.

Why I accepted the position: The position was important because there had not been a person of color as a president and it seemed like it was the right time to introduce an inclusive platform to an organization that has been growing.

Length of term: Two years.

No. 1 project as board president: Inclusive excellence in broadening the diversity of the AACI and broadening its focus to include international cancer centers.

Strategy for achieving goals: I have a strategic plan for implementing inclusive excellence.

Number one challenge: The lack of resources. Racial equity, cancer and my role as board president:

In my presidency and as the cancer center director of Massey, I have never apologized for a platform of health equity for all people, especially those who are at risk. So, from start to finish, I have been committed to, unapologetic about and active in ensuring that the science benefits all communities, particularly the African American community.

How cancer treatment is improving for people of color: We are closing the gap in deaths between Black and white people for many types of cancer, especially lung cancer, according to the latest American Association for Cancer Research report.

Latest recognition: The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Allen Lichter Visionary Leader Award. It recognizes its members who have transformed the oncology field or significantly advanced its mission through their leadership, vision and ability to inspire.

Who is Allen Lichter: Dr. Lichter’s research and development of three-dimensional treatment planning led to a Gold Medal from the American Society for Radiation Oncology. In 2002, he was elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science.

This recognition is meaningful because: Allen Lichter was a pioneer and high-impact person. It was humbling to receive the award.

My leadership philosophy: Leaders should have a vision and bring people on board to help execute a plan.

Who inspires me to lead: My family inspired me to lead. My grandfather, James Darden Sr. My father, Harrison Winn Sr. My uncles, particularly John Darden Jr., James Darden and Kenneth Darden.

Does technology make leadership easier or difficult: Both. Technology allows communication to happen quicker, but it can be a double-edged sword. There are times when things get lost in the translation. Sometimes human conversations are needed.

How my leadership has made a difference: Just showing up and being comfortable with being an African American affects the lives of other young African Americans who see me. It also affects people who are not African American because they see that I am comfortable with who I am. I hope the level of authenticity has inspired others, especially young African Americans, to just learn that being yourself sometimes is good enough.

A good leader is: Someone who is humble, focused on their North Star and able to change tactics without having to change their focus. It’s someone who has tons of grace for others and themselves.

How I start my day: I wake up, grateful to see the ceiling, and I go work out. After that, I make an affirmation about what I’m going to accomplish that day, and then I get to work.

The three words that best describe me: Committed, servant and leader. 

If I had 10 extra minutes in the day: I’d help somebody.

Dream dinner party guest: It would be George Washington Carver because, as an African American who loved science like I do, I would want to know his struggles and what drove him to figure out what to do with one little peanut that didn’t just help African Americans, but it helped all of America and the world over.

Best late-night snack: Swedish Fish.

Top three on my playlist: John Coltrane, Rhiannon Giddens and Reason.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: Hike.

Most inspirational quote: “When you know what you stand for, you know what you fight for,” by former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The top of my “to do” list: Make this cancer center better so that it can serve the people who need it the most in a much more efficient and effective manner.

The best thing I learned while growing up: Stay humble. Know your worth.

Most influential person: My grandfather, because he is a man who grew up in Alabama during a time when just being Black could have gotten him hung, and he persevered. He never lost sight that education was really important.

Most influential book: “Invisible Man,” by Ralph Ellison.

What I’m reading now: “The Warmth of Other Suns,” by Isabel Wilkerson. It’s about the Great Migration and what that meant for the U.S.

Next goal: Build something so good that we inspire the next generation to take the reins and do better.