The world of cancer research has suffered the loss of a gifted cancer scientist, devoted mentor, caring son, husband, father and brother, and friend to many. Filippo G. Giancotti, one of the world’s leading cancer cell biologists, lived an impactful and meaningful life that ended too early on 14 July 2023.

Credit: A photo of Dr Filippo Giancotti, taken by his family

Filippo’s distinguished academic career started with a degree summa cum laude in medicine from the University of Torino in Italy, followed by board-certified training in hematology–oncology and a PhD in cell biology at the same university under the mentorship of Guido Tarone and Paolo Comoglio. He did his postdoctoral research fellowship in cellular adhesion and signaling with Erkki Ruoslahti at the Sanford Burnham Prebys institute and La Jolla Cancer Research Foundation in California from 1988 to 1991. In 1991 he became assistant professor of pathology at New York University and rose to associate professor in 1996. He then joined Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, becoming member in the Sloan Kettering Institute and professor in the Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences. In 2016 he was recruited to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas as scientific director of the David H. Koch Center for Applied Research of Genitourinary Cancers, co-leader of the Prostate Cancer Moonshot Program, Olla S. Stribling Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research and tenured professor in the Department of Cancer Biology. In September 2021, he returned to New York to join the Columbia University Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC) as Herbert and Florence Irving Professor in Basic Science (Cancer), professor of genetics and development, and leader of the Tumor Metastasis Initiative at HICCC.

Filippo was an exceptionally prolific scientist, producing numerous impactful publications that shaped the field of metastasis, with some studies cited thousands of times. His influence was evident in the large volume of invitations he received to write reviews and commentaries and give lectures at conferences and other universities. He received numerous honors and awards, including a Whitehead Presidential Fellowship, an Established Investigator Award from the American Heart Association and, in 2003, a MERIT Award from the National Cancer Institute. For his work on metastasis, he received an inaugural Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Cancer Institute.

Filippo’s lifelong interest in cell adhesion originated from the earlier discovery by Larry Rohrschneider and others that oncoproteins, such as Src and Abl, localize to focal adhesions. As a graduate student, he contributed to the discovery of the α5β1 integrin, the main fibronectin receptor on fibroblasts and hematopoietic cells. His postdoctoral research included the discovery (now in textbooks) that integrins can regulate extracellular matrix assembly and cell proliferation in cancer cells. His postdoctoral mentor, Erkki Ruoslahti, remembers him as a highly productive and innovative researcher who was not only a friend, but also a leader in the lab. Indeed, Filippo continued his pioneering work by establishing his own laboratory to lead the way in elucidating the mechanisms by which cell-adhesion receptors activate signaling pathways that regulate cell fate. He also demonstrated that dysregulation of integrin and cadherin signaling is essential for overproliferation, resistance to apoptosis and tissue invasion by cancer cells. This fundamental attribute of cancer cells, which culminates in metastatic colonization of distant organs, is perhaps the most defining feature of malignancy. In the past decade, the Giancotti lab uncovered interactions between cancer stem-like cells, immune evasion, and cancer dormancy and reactivation. Among other findings, he discovered an elegant mechanism by which the BMP inhibitor Coco decorates incipient metastatic cells and blocks the ability of locally produced BMP to abolish the regenerative capacity of metastatic stem-like cells. He remained committed to his mission of understanding cancer to the very end, seeing through a revised study that revealed the intricate interactions at the nexus of cancer genetics, stemness and immunity during metastatic reactivation, only days before his passing. Finding joy in science in the face of death was emblematic of his character.

Among his mentees, Filippo was beloved and respected for his scientific brilliance and rigor, as well as for his kindness — traits that over the years he taught to his dozens of trainees, who went on to pursue a variety of successful careers in science in academia and beyond. His unshakable devotion to teaching and inspiring researchers at all levels and across many institutions was exemplary. Sara Laudato, a former member of his lab, remembers him as a man of integrity, generosity and wisdom both in science and outside work and as an extraordinary mentor who emphasized transparency, continuous learning and the importance of deeply understanding a topic. Josue Curto, a current postdoc in Filippo’s lab, describes a mentor who inspired and drove his mentees with his warm demeanor and genuine curiosity about science and unraveling the truth. Never one to try to impose his way of thinking, Filippo instead engaged in scientific discussions as in a negotiation: the one who argued better, and provided the decisive data, had the final word. His mentees recall fondly how he treated lab members like family, with Goutam Chakraborty, now an assistant professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, highlighting how Filippo’s love for food made weekly lab meetings truly enjoyable, combining science with lunch from various restaurants in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. “Being Italian, he had a fondness for prosecco, and we always celebrated our research publications with chilled prosecco,” Chakraborty recalls.

Filippo valued scientific creativity and rigor, and disliked cliques and clubs — characteristics he first appreciated in his postdoctoral mentor, from whom he said he learned so much. He never stopped expressing his wonder about developments across the span of science, from the initial events after the Big Bang through the origin of life, and he had a passion for fundamental science that he instilled in his trainees. “Without basic science, there is nothing to translate,” he used to say, emphasizing that “the future is bright for science, and brighter for basic science.” Throughout his career he remained humble, as he expressed so well during his illness: “I am extremely grateful for what basic cancer science has given me during my career. It is a wonderful career. And my family and I are even more grateful for being able to benefit from the scientific insight and care of a group of brilliant colleagues at this time. With certain belief in the science, we are making good progress.”

In the words of Raghu Kalluri, a professor at MD Anderson Cancer Center who knew Filippo for more than 30 years, “He seamlessly combined his passion for science and living, to lead a wonderful life as a dedicated family man.”

We have lost a gentle, compassionate scientist and caring human being, and we will miss him dearly. To Filippo’s wife, three children and extended family, we convey our deepest condolences. Rest in eternal bliss, Filippo — we will carry on your legacy, joined by myriad others, by following your pragmatic advice: “Follow your data, don’t worry and you will get there soon.”

Going forward, the HICCC/Columbia University symposium on tumor metastasis will carry Filippo’s name.