AICF, a New York nonprofit supporting cancer research and early detection, honored Pessina at the organization’s Benefit Dinner and Auctions at the Pierre Hotel in New York on Tuesday.

AICF funds postdoctoral fellowships for Italian scientists who conduct research in the United States and provides no-cost mammograms to medically underserved women. Since 1980, AICF has awarded more than 480 post-doctoral fellowships and provided more than 107,000 women with no-cost mammograms, clinical breast exams and educational services.

“I am honored to receive this award for work that I have been passionate about for many decades,” said Pessina, executive vice chairman and chief executive officer of Walgreens Boots Alliance. “I am incredibly proud to lead WBA, an organization whose purpose is to help people live healthier and happier lives. Supporting people affected by cancer is at the heart of our global effort to be a force for good in society. I would like to thank the chair of the WBA CSR Committee and its members for their commitment.”

Other honorees included the recipients of the prize for Scientific Excellence in Medicine, which is awarded to two researchers who have made groundbreaking discoveries in the fields of cancer biology, prevention, diagnosis or treatment. This year’s award recipients were:

• Dr. Elizabeth Jaffee, FAACR, professor of oncology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins.
• Dr. David Sabatini, member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, professor of biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute.