Komen Scholar Since 2022

Emory University

Atlanta, GA

Sunil S. Badve, M.D., FRCPath, is the Vice Chair of the Department of Pathology and Director of the Pathology Cancer Program at Emory University. He is a surgical pathologist and a translational researcher in breast cancer for over 20 years. Dr. Badve has been previously recognized as a Komen Scholar (2010-2018) and as Best Doctor and Top Doctor for the last several years. Dr. Badve has received the AACR Team Sciences Award (2020) as a member of the TCGA Team. Dr. Badve has served on several committees including the NCI Breast Oncology Local Disease, the ECOG Breast Committees, the AJCC (8th edition) and WHO for breast and thymic cancers. Dr. Badve currently serves on the NCI Breast Cancer Steering Committee, and has served on the Breast Cancer Correlative Sciences Committee and the ASCO-CAP committee to develop guidelines for hormone receptor testing. Dr. Badve is the Principal Investigator for the Clinical Trial Sequencing Program (CTSP), which uses “omics” to identify the factors associated with recurrence in ER+ and ER-tumors enrolled in the ECOG E-5103 clinical trial. This program is a continuation of the TCGA program and involves multi-omics analysis of FFPE tumors. Dr. Badve is also the study chair for several ECOG-ACRIN clinical trials including COMPASS-HER2pCR, COMET, and E-1201 clinical trials and for 2 HCRN triple-negative breast cancer clinical trials (BRE-146 and BRE-158). Pioneering work from his group has led to defining of cutoffs for ASCO-CAP hormone receptor guidelines, recognition of the role of stromal tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in breast cancer, gene signature for DCIS (DCIS Score) and the use of innovative spatial multiplex immunofluorescence-based CellDive technology for the diagnosis and classification of intraductal breast lesions. Dr. Badve’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding tumor cell diversity and developing novel strategies to prevent recurrence following CDK4/6 therapy by studying the impact and identifying features that lead to resistance as well as developing preclinical models to understand and overcome this resistance.

Komen Scholar Since 2019

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

Regina Barzilay, Ph.D., is a School of Engineering Distinguished Professor for AI and Health in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and amember of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is also an AI faculty lead for Jameel Clinic, a MIT center for Machine Learning in Health. Dr. Barzilay is a computer scientist with extensive expertise in applied machine learning and natural language processing. She is focused on bringing the power of big data and machine learning methods into cancer care and prevention. Dr. Barzilay’s current research efforts involve developing deep learning models that utilize imaging, structured data, and other inputs to identify trends that affect early diagnosis, treatment, risk assessment, and disease prevention. She is poised to play a leading role in creating new models that advance the capacity of computers to harness the power of human language data. Dr. Barzilay’s Komen-funded research is focused on developing personalized risk models that fully utilize the richness of information available in mammograms by analyzing sequences of consecutive mammograms from individual patients to model changes over time in their tissue and incorporating additional patient information, such as BRCA status or family history, into the image-based models to make risk predictions more interpretable and transparent to physicians and patients.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Boston University

Boston, MA

Tracy Battaglia, M.D., M.P.H., is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health where she serves as Director of the Women’s Health Unit, a DHHS designated Center of Excellence in Women’s Health. As a practicing internist and breast health specialist at Boston Medical Center, the largest safety net medical center in New England, her approach to addressing breast cancer disparities focuses largely on engaging the community as partners in action-oriented research. She has 20 years of experience designing, implementing, and evaluating interventions that use community-engaged research methods in pursuit of equitable outcomes. A pioneer in the development of oncology Patient Navigation programs that target under-resourced cancer patients, Dr. Battaglia has contributed to the scientific evidence solidifying the impact of navigation on reducing delays across the continuum of cancer care. As Director of the Community Engagement Program for the Boston University Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI), she is responsible for creating a research environment that supports community engagement in all aspects of translational science. She is currently leading a cooperative study funded by the National Center to Advance Translational Science (NCATS) in partnership with the four Massachusetts CTSI hubs (Boston University, Harvard University, Tufts University and University of Massachusetts) to support a city-wide dissemination study to reduce breast cancer disparities through a patient navigation network. She is founding chair of the National Navigation Roundtable, a collaborative of over 50 member organizations whose collective goal is to ensure navigation services are available to all those cancer patients in need.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Houston, TX

Abenaa M. Brewster, M.D., M.H.S., is a tenured Professor in the Department of Clinical Cancer Prevention at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center(MDACC). She also has an adjunct appointment in the Department of Epidemiology. Dr. Brewster is a breast medical oncologist and serves as the medical director of the MD Anderson Nellie B. Connally Breast Center. Her research involves studying the clinical, epidemiological and biological factors that determine breast cancer risk and survival. She is the principal investigator of a study that is following women at high risk of developing breast cancer over time to better understand how to improve the early detection of breast cancer and assess a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer. With her research team, Dr. Brewster is also investigating patient-centered outcomes after a double mastectomy. Dr. Brewster has received many awards including the Texas Business Women’s Award and the Kathryne Stream Award for Excellence in Women’s Health. However, the award that she is most proud of is being a Susan G. Komen Scholar. Dr. Brewster’s Komen-funded research is focused on developing a non-invasive blood test for symptom and screen-detected breast cancers prior to imaging abnormalities or the development of a breast lump by utilizing a plasma molecular profile to identify early rapid-growth breast cancers and to stratify women for risk of recurrence to decrease overtreatment and improve survival.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Advocates in Science Since 2020

Birmingham, AL

Thelma Brown, an Advocate in Science from Birmingham, Alabama. Thelma formerly worked as a Safety Analysis Engineer in the nuclear power industry and was initially diagnosed with ER+ breast cancer in 2008. Prompted by her family history of the disease, Thelma became involved with Susan G. Komen even before her diagnosis, concentrating her efforts into outreach and education as well as research advocacy. She has served as an advocate with the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium, and has collaborated with researchers from various institutions. In addition to being keenly interested in cutting edge research that will lead to more effective, less toxic treatments, she is passionate about research and clinical trials being inclusive, ensuring of all that will benefit from breakthroughs.

Komen Scholar Since 2021

Advocates in Science Since 2018

King of Prussia, PA

Tomika Bryant departed the pharmaceutical industry as a biochemist in 2000 to pursue life outside of the lab. Becoming a social media influencer and a trained scientist provided an enormous opportunity to speak on behalf of patients once she was diagnosed with Triple Negative Breast Cancer in 2013. The experience as a scientist and communicator created a unique scenario where it was easier to accept and digest treatment. Refusing to allow cancer to create limitations, Tomika has become a strong advocate for women diagnosed with cancer. She is striving to increase cancer awareness among support groups, organizations, patients, caregivers and the general public. Tomika wants to reduce the stigma and fear of cancer in specific socioeconomic groups, with a longterm goal of encouraging community volunteers and patient groups all throughout the state and country. She remains focused on helping reduce cancer incidences, mortality and improve quality of life through better medication selections. This in turn enables patients to advocate for themselves. Self-advocacy being a precursor for some clinical trials is important along with maintaining a good quality of life. Tomika serves as a consumer reviewer for the Department of Defense’s Breast Cancer Research Program, Pennsylvania Research Grant Peer Review, Komen Advocacy Advisory Taskforce, Advocates in Science Communications Committee, Pennsylvania Public Policy & Advocacy Committee and is a Project Lead graduate. Continuing to work with clinical trial researchers to secure grant applications focused on the improvement of women’s lives with Breast Cancer, especially in grants related to health disparities and health equity is paramount. Tomika is co-founder of Black Women’s Cancer Collaborative and is currently collaborating as an advocate on several breast cancer research projects.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Houston, TX

Mariana Chavez MacGregor, M.D., M.Sc., FASCO, is a tenured Associate Professor in the Health Services Research Department and holds a joint appointment in the Breast Medical Oncology Department at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She is a breast medical oncologist committed to improving the outcomes of her patients while preserving their quality of life and providing evidence-based, research-driven compassionate care. Her research interests focus on outcomes and disparities research, evaluating patterns of care and understanding the long-term effects of therapy. Her work expands to areas related to cost, treatment-related complications and cancer care delivery particularly among minorities and underrepresented populations. She has extensive experience using large databases and population registries to answer clinically-relevant questions. Some of her work has helped to better characterize the impact of treatment delays and identifying populations at higher risk of experiencing treatment delays. In addition, her work is helping to identify patients at higher risk of developing treatment-related complications. Dr. Chavez MacGregor’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding factors that influence treatment initiation and treatment completion that are associated with adverse outcomes by assessing the impact and risk factors that delay cancer care delivery and developing a navigation intervention for underserved patients.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

Oregon Health Science University

Portland, OR

Lisa M. Coussens, Ph.D. is the Professor and Chairwoman of Cell, Developmental & Cancer Biology Department, the Hildegard Lamfrom Endowed Chair in Basic Science and the Associate Director for Basic Research at the Knight Cancer Institute of Oregon Health & Science University. Dr. Coussens’ area of research focuses on inflammation and cancer and understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms of immune cell recruitment into neoplastic tissue, and the subsequent regulation of immune cells on evolving cancer cells. In addition, Dr. Coussens and her team investigate the tumor microenvironment and how the immune response varies based on the type of tissue/tumor, and how certain subsets of immune cells, notably macrophages, regulate tissue remodeling, angiogenesis, T cell suppression and tumor progression. The long-term goal of her research is to translate basic science discoveries toward rational design of novel therapeutics whose aim will be to block and/or alter rate-limiting events critical for solid tumor growth, maintenance or recurrence in humans, and/or therapeutics that enhance the efficacy of standard-of-care cytotoxic or immune therapies. Dr. Coussens’ Komen funded work will determine how to specifically identify and re-activate T memory cells, a subset of immune cells that can kill breast tumor cells. She is proposing that combining paclitaxel with colony stimulating factor 1 receptor inhibitors can sensitize “cold” breast tumors to αPD-1 mAb therapy, thus relieving epigenetically encoded dysfunction of CD8+ T resident memory cells. This project will use preclinical models to identify the mechanisms by which certain subsets of T memory cells can be therapeutically activated to regress existing breast tumors or predict immunotherapy treatment response.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Christina Curtis, Ph.D. M.S. is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Genetics at Stanford University School of Medicine and an Endowed Scholar. Additionally, she is Director of Breast Cancer Translational Research and Co-Director of the Molecular Tumor Board at Stanford Cancer Institute. Trained in molecular and computational biology, Dr. Curtis uses systems biology and computational approaches to understand breast cancer progression. In particular, her research is focused on defining the molecular determinants of tumor progression and on identifying robust biomarkers to guide patient stratification. Dr. Curtis’ Komen funded work will harness patient molecular and clinical data as well as patient-derived breast cancer organoid models to identify delineate the molecular features and therapeutic vulnerabilities in patients at highest risk of relapse. Through these efforts, she seeks to better understand the molecular determinants of breast cancer progression and resistance to inform strategies for personalized breast cancer management to enable improved patient outcomes.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

Angela M. DeMichele, M.D., M.S.C.E., holds the Jill and Alan Miller Endowed Chair in Breast Cancer Excellence and is Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research focuses on development of experimental therapeutics, investigation of prognostic and predictive biomarkers and design of novel approaches to identify and treat minimal residual disease to prevent recurrence. Nationally, she is the Co-Chair of the ECOG/ACRIN Breast Committee and Chair of the Trial Operations Working Group of the I-SPY2 Trial Consortium. She has led/co-led several national, multicenter trials, including PALAVY, PALLAS, COMPASS-pCR and AMMBER trials. At the Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) of the University of Pennsylvania, she co-directs the 2-PREVENT Translational Center of Excellence, co-leads the ACC Breast Cancer Program and directs the ACC Breast Cancer Clinical Research Unit, where she has built a peer-review funded research program and developed translational resources, including a comprehensive biobank and database. PI of numerous translational epidemiologic studies and investigator-initiated clinical trials, including the Wellness After Breast Cancer longitudinal cohort study, which has shed light on the role of inflammation in breast cancer recurrence, she has played a pivotal role in the development of the first CDK4/6 inhibitor, Palbociclib, and led the I-SPY2 Trial in graduating several new agents in the neo-adjuvant setting that increase pathologic complete response. Additionally, she serves on the Executive Committee of the AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, the NCI Breast Cancer Steering Committee, clinical guidelines committees in both the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the European Society of Clinical Oncology and as an Associate Editor at Nature Breast Cancer. She trains the next generation of clinical researchers through extensive mentoring, both locally and nationally, as well as thesis advising Master’s Candidates in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. DeMichele’s Komen-funded research is focused on validating new methods for detecting minimal residual disease to enable novel therapeutic approaches to prevent recurrence by utilizing novel techniques for detecting disseminated tumor cells and circulating tumor DNA.

Komen Scholar Since 2015

The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Houston, TX

Sharon H. Giordano, M.D., M.P.H., FASCO, is Chair of the Department of Health Services Research and a Professor of Medicine in the Department of Breast Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. A health services researcher and clinician, Dr. Giordano’s research focuses on evaluating how a variety of factors (e.g., social, financial, personal behaviors) effect access to and quality of health care, and ultimately how this impacts health outcomes for cancer patients. Dr. Giordano has led several comparative effectiveness research studies in breast cancer patients, as well as research to assess the late effects of treatment. She has led a series of studies on male breast cancer, including a Komen-funded international clinical trial to better characterize the clinical features, biology and outcomes for men diagnosed with breast cancer. Dr. Giordano’s Komen-funded research aims to understand the “real-world” toxicities (i.e., outside of the highly-selected patient populations enrolled in clinical trials), including medication-related toxicities and the financial toxicity, associated with systemic therapies for breast cancer.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Columbia University Medical Center

New York, NY

Dawn L. Hershman, M.D., M.S., is Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology and Director of the Breast Cancer Program of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Hershman’s expertise includes breast cancer treatment, prevention, survivorship, late-effects of cancer therapy, health outcomes and health disparities research. A clinician scientist, Dr. Hershman’s research interests focus on understanding ways to improve breast cancer outcomes by identifying factors that are associated with suboptimal breast cancer therapy and conducting clinical trials aiming at predicting which patients may be more susceptible to experience either treatment or financial toxicities related to their breast cancer care. Dr. Hershman investigates over-use of procedures and drugs with uncertain benefit to the patient. Dr. Hershman’s Komen-funded research is focused on evaluating interventions to assist patients with taking cancer and non-cancer medications by utilizing a structured implementation of a commercially available medication reminder application with instruction and feedback to improve global medication adherence and thus outcomes in patients with localized and metastatic breast cancer and comorbid conditions.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

University of Michigan

Ann Arbor, MI

Reshma Jagsi, M.D., D.Phil., is the Newman Family Professor and Deputy Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology, and the Director of the Center for Bioethics and Social Sciences in Medicine at the University of Michigan. A practicing breast radiation oncologist, Dr. Jagsi has focused her work on improving the quality of care delivered to patients with breast cancer. With a medical degree, a social science doctorate, and fellowship training in ethics, Dr. Jagsi has a unique educational background that allows her to work at eradicating breast cancer through both medical and social research. Studying radiation treatment, she aims at advancing the ways in which breast cancer is treated with radiation and the understanding of patient decision-making, cost, and access to appropriate care. Her social scientific research includes research into issues of bioethics arising from cancer care and research regarding gender issues, including studies of women’s representation in the medical profession. Dr. Jagsi’s Komen-funded research aims at better understanding inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), specifically the mechanisms by which drugs targeting DNA damage (PARP inhibitors) and radiotherapy may interact to improve the efficacy of radiotherapy, while reducing its toxicity, and the outcomes for women diagnosed with IBC.

Koman Scholar 2010-2012 & 2019

Scientific Advisory Board 2012-2017

Advocates in Science Since 2008

Kansas City, MO

Cheryl L. Jernigan, CPA, F.A.C.H.E., is a 25-year breast cancer “thriver” and cancer research advocate. She strives to inform and empower patients to be effective partners, working with researchers and clinicians to enhance and focus research on what matters to patients. Cheryl was previously CEO of the Kansas City Area Hospital Association with over 18 years of experience in health policy, advocacy and community/national leadership on behalf of hospitals. Currently, she is the Lead Advocate for: Patient & Investigator Voices Organizing Together (PIVOT), an unique University of Kansas Cancer Center initiative; the Frontiers Clinical Science Translation Award; the Kansas Institute for Precision Medicine; and the Greater Plains Collaborative (a Clinical Data Research Network in the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Initiative (PCORI) PCORnet grant. Nationally, Cheryl was a founding member and currently serves on the steering committee of Susan G. Komen’s Advocates in Science program. She has been actively involved in Komen’s BD4BC (Big Data for Breast Cancer) initiative, including the development of their advocate training program (BD4P). She served as a member of Komen’s Scientific Advisory Board from 2012-2018. An active research advocate, Ms. Jernigan is a member of the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Central Institutional Review Board for Adult Late Phase Clinical Trials; Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey External Advisory Board; the Clinical Trials Transformation Initiative’s Steering Committee; and the Multi-Regional Clinical Trials Center’s Working Groups on Returning Clinical Trial Results to Participants and Returning Individual Results. She serves as an Advocate Member on the Cancer Prevention & Epidemiology Committee and as a member on the Patient Advocate Committee of SWOG for Cancer Research.

Komen Scholar Since 2021

Advocates in Science Since 2019

Swansea, IL

Sheila Johnson is a passionate advocate for clinical trials and breast cancer research. She is an 11-year metastatic breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed in December 2009. Since her diagnosis, she decided she would speak loudly and openly for not only MBC patients but for black patients. Sheila has participated in many breast cancer review boards as a consumer reviewer which include Komen Missouri, Patient Centered Outcome Research Institute (PCORI), DOD Breast Cancer Research Program and METAvivor. As a consumer reviewer, having a seat at the table with researchers allows her to share her story and also be a part of the grant approval/disapproval process. Her platform and the reason why she became an advocate is to raise awareness about the racial disparities black women face. It’s very important for researchers to include black women in the recruitment of clinical trials because black women will use these therapies if approved. Black women have a higher mortality rate than any other race and this has contributed to many different factors (racial disparities, misconceptions about black women and socio-economics). We as abreast community need to understand why these disparities exist and continue to push to help reduce these devastating statistics.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

Yibin Kang, Ph.D., is a Warner-Lambert/Parke-Davis Professor of Molecular Biology at Princeton University and an Associate Director of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Dr. Kang has served as the President of the Metastasis Research Society (2016-2018) and Chair of the AACR Tumor Environment Working Group (2018), and is a founding member of the newly established Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Princeton Branch. Dr. Kang’s research focuses on the molecular mechanisms of breast cancer metastasis. He discovered new genes that promote initiation, progression, metastasis and treatment resistance of breast cancer; delineated tumor-stromal interactions that were essential for metastatic growth and evasion of anti-tumor immune response; and identified novel regulators of mammary gland cell fate determination and cellular plasticity. Dr. Kang’s Komen-funded research is focused on elucidating the function of a key metabolic enzyme in metastasis and immune evasion that generates an immunosuppressive environment in breast cancer and evaluating the therapeutic benefit of targeting this enzyme with novel small molecule inhibitors.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Mayo Clinic- Jacksonville

Jacksonville, FL

Keith L. Knutson, Ph.D., is a Professor of Immunology, the Andrew A. and Mary S. Sugg Professor of Cancer Research, and a consultant in the Department of Immunology at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL. Dr. Knutson serves as a member of the Mayo Clinic in Florida Research Operations Management Team and the Director of the Mayo Clinic in Florida Cytometry and Imaging Lab. He is also Co-Director of the Mayo Clinic Enterprise Cancer Center’s Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy Program. Dr. Knutson is internationally recognized in the field of cancer immunology. His research focuses on the immunology and immunotherapy of prevalent women’s cancer namely breast, ovarian, and lung cancers, both the basic immunobiology and clinical translation, including clinical trials. His contributions to science include clinical development and testing of tumor antigen-specific vaccines in patients with breast and ovarian cancers. He currently has 6 FDA-approved vaccine trials underway and is principal investigator of 3 Department of Defense grants and 1 NIH grant to test vaccines aimed at preventing recurrence of breast and ovarian cancer, including triple-negative breast cancer for which there are no targeted therapies. Dr. Knutson’s Komen-funded research is focused on developing breast cancer preventive vaccines by identifying a panel of overexpressed antigens that are widely shared amongst all major breast cancer subtypes and specifically expressed on breast cancer stem cells to allow for an immunization strategy for detecting and eradicating these cells before they become invasive and continuously surveying the breast in the absence of disease.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Allison W. Kurian, M.D., M.Sc., is a Professor of Medicine and of Epidemiology and Population Health at Stanford University School of Medicine, co-leader of the Population Sciences Program at Stanford Cancer Institute, Director of the Stanford Women’s Clinical Cancer Genetics Program and Associate Chief of the Stanford Division of Oncology.Dr. Kurian’s research focuses on the identification of women with elevated breast and gynecologic cancer risk, and on the development and evaluation of novel techniques for early cancer detection and risk reduction. As an oncologist and epidemiologist, she aims to understand cancer burden and improve cancer treatment quality at the population level. Her research employs methods from the population sciences, in collaboration with the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program and other large, real-world data resources. Dr. Kurian leads epidemiologic studies of cancer risk factors, clinical trials of novel approaches to cancer risk reduction, and decision analyses of strategies to improve cancer outcomes. Dr. Kurian is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation. Dr. Kurian’s Komen-funded research is focused on developing liquid biopsy techniques to analyze cell-free DNA for detecting primary and recurrent breast cancers as well as prediction of breast cancer in women who were initially cancer-free.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Boston, MA

Jennifer A. Ligibel, M.D., FASCO, is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Senior Physician at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). She is also the Director of the Leonard P. Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies and Healthy Living and the Director of the Center for Faculty Well-Being at DFCI. Dr. Ligibel’s research interests focus on the impact of lifestyle factors, such as physical activity and body weight, on breast cancer risk and outcomes. She has conducted more than a dozen lifestyle intervention trials in cancer populations, evaluating the impact of exercise and weight loss interventions on endpoints such as biomarkers associated with cancer risk and outcomes, fitness, body composition, and quality of life in cancer patients and survivors. Dr. Ligibel’s work also has focused on exploring the biologic basis for the relationship between energy balance and cancer, through interventional projects in cancer and at-risk populations evaluating the biologic changes that occur with weight loss and increased physical activity. Prior work funded by Komen established the impact of exercise on immune and inflammatory biomarkers in breast cancer, demonstrating for the first time that exercise could have a direct impact on breast cancer in humans. Dr. Ligibel’s Komen-funded grant supports the Breast Cancer Weight Loss (BWEL) Trial, an NCI-funded Phase III clinical trial that is testing the impact of a weight loss intervention upon the risk of disease recurrence in more than 3,100 overweight and obese women with early-stage breast cancer.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Boston, MA

Nancy U. Lin, M.D., is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Associate Chief of Breast Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), and Director of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Program at DFCI. She is co-PI of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center NCI Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE). Dr. Lin has led multiple clinical trials testing novel therapies for patients with metastatic breast cancer, with a particular focus on those with cancer that has spread to the brain (brain metastases). She has led national efforts to increase the inclusion of patients with brain metastases in clinical trials. Dr. Lin has been involved in the development of several drugs which have become standard of care for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer, including those with active brain metastases. Dr. Lin also leads the EMBRACE (Ending Metastatic Breast Cancer for Everyone) clinical and research programs at DFCI. The EMBRACE research study, which has enrolled nearly 3,000 individuals, enables multiple research aims, including genetic profiling of biospecimens from patients with metastatic breast cancer at diagnosis and at progression on each line of therapy in order to uncover mechanisms of treatment resistance, characterizing patterns of care and outcomes, and understanding patient-reported outcomes in the advanced disease setting. Dr. Lin’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding resistance to antibody drug conjugates in patients with metastatic breast cancer by determining the differences in target expression and genomic features after treatment.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Washington University in St. Louis, MO

St. Louis, MO

Cynthia X. Ma, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor of Medicine, Attending Physician in Oncology, Clinical Director of the Breast Cancer Program in the Section of Medical Oncology, Division of Oncology at Washington University in St. Louis, and Co-leader of the Breast Cancer Focus Group at the Siteman Cancer Center. Dr. Ma’s research focus is in the area of breast cancer biomarkers and targeted therapeutics development. Dr. Ma has conducted a number of early phase trials of novel drugs that target cell cycle, DNA damage repair, and growth factor receptor signaling pathways in patients with resistant breast cancer. She is the study chair for the phase III neoadjuvant/adjuvant trial A011106 (ALTERNATE trial) to validate biomarkers of sensitivity to endocrine therapy for personalized treatment decisions, to develop better endocrine therapy drugs, and to understand drivers of endocrine therapy resistance in patients with early stage estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. In addition, her laboratory has expertise evaluating novel treatment approaches and biomarkers in preclinical models, including patient-derived xenografts. Dr. Ma’s Komen-funded research is focused on genomic analysis of specimens obtained from the ALTERNATE trial in the context of patient outcomes by determining the differences in genomic features of ER+ and HER2- breast cancers to develop unique biomarkers that define endocrine therapy resistance mechanisms as personalized therapeutic targets.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

Duke University

Durham, NC

Donald P. McDonnell, Ph.D., is the Glaxo-Wellcome Professor of Molecular Cancer Biology at Duke University School of Medicine. In addition, he serves as Associate Director of Translational Research within the Duke Cancer Institute. With a career spanning industry and academia, Dr. McDonnell’s research has focused on defining the mechanisms by which estrogens, working through their cognate receptors, impact the pathobiology of breast cancer and the exploitation of this information to develop new endocrine therapies. He has a specific interest in developing new therapeutic interventions to treat cancers that have become resistant to standard of care endocrine therapies, work that resulted in the discovery by his group of the first oral selective estrogen receptor downregulator and several follow-up compounds that are in clinical development. Recently, his group has determined that metabolites of cholesterol, elevated in patients with dyslipidemia, can function as bona fide estrogens establishing a biochemical link between high cholesterol/obesity and breast cancer pathology. Dr. McDonnell’s Komen-funded research aims are directed towards the development of approaches to interfere with the activity of LYPD3 (Ly6/PLAUR domain-containing protein 3) and AGR2 (Anterior Gradient 2); two components of a novel signaling pathway that his team has shown to be important in the pathobiology of endocrine therapy-resistant breast cancer.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Advocates in Science Since 2019

Helena, MT

Michelle McGree is a 11-year, two-time breast cancer survivor and advocate, diagnosed at age 28. She lives in Helena Montana and is a fish habitat biologist with a M.S. degree in Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology. She is passionate about research advocacy and helping to make scientific studies impactful to breast cancer patients. She also enjoys helping others through breast cancer diagnoses, treatments, and the new normal. Michelle has been a consumer reviewer and mentor for the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program since 2014. She is also an alumnus of the Living Beyond Breast Cancer Young Advocate Program and has been a member of Komen’s Advocates in Science Program since 2019. She enjoys participating in scientific breast cancer meetings and has shared her experiences and perspective through blogs and podcasting. Michelle is also passionate about the role of fitness in the risk of breast cancer and recurrence and has fundraised for cancer research and support of young breast cancer survivors by biking many miles in the Fred Hutch Obliteride and the Young Survival Coalition Tour de Pink. Michelle started working with Susan G. Komen as a Race for the Cure volunteer, organizer, and honorary survivor. She participates in various efforts as an Advocates in Science.

Komen Scholar Since 2017

Advocates in Science Since 2010

Houston, TX

Anne M. Meyn, M.Ed., was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer in 1989 and throughout 1990. While in treatment, the Komen Houston Affiliate was founded, offering knowledge, support and long-lasting friendships. Ms. Meyn was compelled to be involved in an organization whose goal it was to eradicate breast cancer. She has served on the Komen Houston Affiliate Board of Directors since 2011, and she co-chairs the Komen Houston Medical Advisory Council Adjunct committee. Selected as M.D. Anderson Cancer Center’s patient advocate on the Komen-funded Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium (TBCRC), she became the TBCRC Patient Advocate Working Group Co-Chair in 2016. As an AIS member, Ms. Meyn received scholarships to Komen-funded advocate programs at ASCO Breast Cancer Symposium. She was also introduced to the Komen Tissue Bank while she participated in Komen Promise Grant-funded advocate workshop at Indiana University, and she was instrumental in having Komen Houston host a tissue collection event in the most diverse city in the country. An experienced research grants reviewer, she is passionate about research, as she knows new treatments and cures will be the ultimate result.

Komen Scholar Since 2017

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Boston, MA

Elizabeth A. Mittendorf, M.D., Ph.D., is the Rob and Karen Hale Distinguished Chair in Surgical Oncology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Associate Chair of Research in the Department of Surgery, and Director of the Breast Immuno-Oncology program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). Dr. Mittendorf completed medical school at Case Western Reserve University, where she did surgical residency. After, she served on active duty in the U.S. military, followed by a surgical oncology fellowship at MD Anderson, where she was faculty until she joined DFCI in January 2018. Her work focuses on understanding immunologic aspects of the microenvironment in breast cancer in order to inform therapeutic strategies. Specifically, she is evaluating the impact of standard therapies on the phenotype and function of immune cells that are present in tumors as well as in a patient’s circulating blood. Dr. Mittendorf has led many clinical trials, from phase I to phase III, with a specific interest in breast cancer immunotherapy. Her Komen-funded research is investigating the mechanisms by which hormone receptor positive breast cancers hide from detection by the immune system.

Komen Scholar Since 2017

University of California Davis

Sacramento, CA

Elizabeth Morris M.D., FACR, is Professor and Chair of Radiology at the University of California, Davis (UCD) School of Medicine. Dr. Morris graduated summa cum laude from UCD in Biochemistry and received her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She completed her residency at Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC) and a body/breast imaging fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) where she remained on faculty until December 2020 where she was the Chief of the Breast Imaging Service and Larry Norton Endowed Chair. Dr. Morris is a fellow of the American College of Radiology (ACR), Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) and International Society of MR in Medicine (ISMRM) and is past president of the SBI. Her research focus is on how best to use newer techniques such as MRI for early breast cancer detection and to improve the workup of breast lesions. In collaboration with her colleagues, she has written over 230 papers, 40 chapters, and 5 books about breast disease with an emphasis on the use of MRI. She has lectured widely both nationally and internationally at over 320 conferences. She has mentored over 50 international research fellows. She has grants from NCI, RSNA, Komen Foundation, and Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Her recent research efforts have involved looking at imaging biomarkers to assess risk and treatment response.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

University of Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, PA

Steffi Oesterreich, Ph.D., is Professor of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Co- Leader of the Cancer Biology Program at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center (HCC), and Co-Director of the Women’s Cancer Research Center at Magee Women’s Research Institute and HCC. Since her early graduate studies in Germany, Dr. Oesterreich has been passionate about breast cancer research. She enjoys working in multi‐disciplinary teams, handin-hand with medical oncologists, surgeons, bioinformaticians, and pathologists, motivated by important clinical problems with critical input from breast cancer advocates. Dr. Oesterreich’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding the spread of ER+ breast cancer by analyzing liquid biopsies and metastases from a tissue donation program in order to predict drug resistance and progression with a special focus on invasive lobular carcinoma and tumors with estrogen receptor mutations as well as working with a group of patient advocates to implement rapid autopsy programs at other institutions for tissue donations.

Komen Scholar Since 2017 and 2010-2016

The University of Chicago Medicine

Chicago, IL

Olufunmilayo (Funmi) Olopade, M.D., FACP, is the Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics and founding director of the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics and Global Health at the University of Chicago Medicine. Dr. Olopade’s research is focused on gaining a better understanding of the root causes and genomic basis of cancer in diverse populations. She has published extensively on genetic and non-genetic risk factors for breast cancer and is internationally renowned for her work in inherited cancer syndromes and clinical expertise in early detection and prevention of breast cancer in high risk women. Dr. Olopade has dedicated her entire career to characterizing genes frequently altered in cancer and has defined the different pathways leading to aggressive forms of breast cancer. Her innovative research is also defining how to define levels of risk and screen women at the highest risk using blood based and imaging biomarkers including Magnetic Resonance Imaging. A distinguished scholar and mentor, Dr. Olopade has received numerous honors and awards including honorary degrees from five universities, Franklin Roosevelt Freedom from Want Medal and a 2005 MacArthur Fellowship for “translating findings on the molecular genetics of breast cancer in African and African-American women into innovative clinical practices in the United States and abroad.” Dr. Olopade earned her medical degree from the University of Ibadan College of Medicine in Nigeria. She trained in Internal Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago and in Oncology, Hematology and Cancer Genetics at the University of Chicago. She serves as director on several Civic and Corporate Boards.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Nashville, TN

Tuya Pal, M.D. is a Professor of Medicine and an Ingram Professor of Cancer Research at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where she is also the Associate Director for Cancer Health Disparities at the Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center. Dr. Pal’s research is focused on identification of genetic risk factors raise cancer risk, and strategies to reduce this risk, including efforts among underserved populations. Her research spans across basic and clinical science, including health services delivery and implementation science. She has conducted studies to better understand genetic and non‐genetic factors associated with the etiology and outcomes of breast cancer among young Black women, including the molecular characterization of triple‐negative breast cancers. Through this work, she identified cancer education and engagement needs among Black women, which led to efforts focused on raising awareness about inherited breast cancer in this population. She created the Inherited Cancer Registry (ICARE) Initiative over a decade ago, which is amongst the largest research registries focused on inherited cancers in the country. Through these efforts, she has partnered with providers across the United States and beyond to grow the registry and conduct translational studies, while providing opportunities for education and engagement for patients and providers. She has led observational studies to understand the delivery of hereditary breast cancer services across diverse populations and healthcare settings, to inform development of interventional studies currently underway. These include alternative delivery models to scale up care for individuals at‐risk for inherited cancer; and test interventions to improve follow‐up care for those with inherited cancer across diverse populations, and healthcare settings. Her clinical activities focus on hereditary cancer risk evaluation. She is the Vice Chair of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Genetics/Familial Guidelines Committee for Breast, Ovarian and Pancreatic Cancer; and the Editor-in-Chief for the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Genetics PDQ Editorial Board.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

Boston University

Boston, MA

Julie R. Palmer, Sc.D., M.P.H., is the Karin Grunebaum Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and Director of the Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University. Dr. Palmer is also Associate Director for Population Sciences and Co-Director of the BU-BMC Cancer Center. Her research interests focus on racial disparities in the occurrence of hormone receptor-negative breast cancer and in breast cancer mortality. Dr. Palmer is a founding leader of the Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS), a prospective cohort study of 59,000 African American women who have been followed since 1995. Her breast cancer research within the BWHS includes work on risk prediction models for breast cancer in African American women, identification of childbearing patterns as a contributing cause to the excess incidence of estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer in African American women, and investigation of the relationship of type 2 diabetes to breast cancer risk and prognosis. Her genetics research includes the first large-scale study of germline mutations in breast cancer genes among African American women. Dr. Palmer received the Komen-funded AACR Distinguished Lecture on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in 2017. Dr. Palmer’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding the impact of chronic stress on breast cancer recurrence and mortality by identifying psychosocial factors and differences in gene expression that disproportionately affect Black women.

Komen Scholar Since 2017

Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

Nashville, TN

Ben Ho Park, M.D., Ph.D., is the Cornelius Abernathy Craig Chair in Medicine, the Division Director of Hematology/Oncology and Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He is also Co‐Leader of the Breast Cancer Research Program, Associate Director for Translational Research and Director of Precision Oncology for Vanderbilt‐Ingram Cancer Center. He received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees in 1995 at The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and pursued further training in Internal Medicine and Hematology/Oncology at Penn. He went to Johns Hopkins for a postdoctoral fellowship in cancer genetics, before joining its faculty in 2002. He was recruited to Vanderbilt in 2018. Dr. Park’s research focuses on using genetic models to identify, validate and develop targeted therapies for breast cancer. He specifically studies the PI3 Kinase/AKT signaling pathway and his work identified high frequency of mutation in the PIK3CA gene in human breast cancers, opening the door for PI3K‐targeted therapies in breast cancer. With Komen‐funding, Dr. Park is pursuing his efforts in precision oncology: specific drugs to specific patients, focusing on targeting mutations in a gene called SF3B1 that are present only in cancer cells and not normal cells.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

University of North Carolina

Chapel Hill, NC

Charles M. Perou, Ph.D., is the May Goldman Shaw Distinguished Professor of Molecular Oncology, Co-Director of the UNC Computational Medicine Program, Director of the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC) Bioinformatics Group, Program Co-Director of the LCCC Breast Cancer Research Program, and Professor in the Department of Genetics, at the University of North Carolina at ChapelHill. Dr. Perou’s research has focused on genomics to identify breast cancer subtypes that are of prognostic and predictive value. Dr. Perou aims at translating his findings to the clinic, by using genomics to inform therapeutic decision making. With Komen funding and in sponsorship with the Danaher Corporation, his research started showing how the immune system contributes to patient outcomes and how immunotherapies have potential in treating aggressive breast cancers, like triple-negative and basal-like breast cancers. Dr. Perou was the first to deliver the Komen-funded AACR Distinguished Lecture on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in 2010. He received the Brinker Award for Scientific Distinction in Basic Science in 2016. Dr. Perou’s Komen-funded research is focused on using genomic data to molecularly characterize the HER2-enriched breast cancer subtype and identify additional genetic drivers of this subtype (beyond HER2) that could be targeted with new therapeutic approaches and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Lajos Pusztai, M.D., D. Phil., is Professor of Medicine at Yale University, Co-Leader of the Genomics Genetics and Epigenetics Program, and Scientific Co-Director of the Center for Breast Cancer at Yale Cancer Center. He is also Chair of the Breast Cancer Research Committee of the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG). Dr. Pusztai has made important contributions to establish that estrogen receptor-positive and -negative breast cancers have fundamentally different molecular, clinical, and epidemiological characteristics and pioneered the use of gene expression profiling as a diagnostic technology. Dr. Pusztai’s research also clarified the clinical value of preoperative (neoadjuvant) chemotherapy in different breast cancer subtypes and demonstrated the prognostic and chemotherapy response predictive values of immune cells in cancer tissues. Dr. Pusztai’s Komen-funded research is focused on validating a new statistical tool to describe the efficacy of treatment with new immunotherapies for TNBC as well as a new biomarker to predict selective treatment of TNBC while exploring a new class of inhibitors for potential anti-cancer therapy for all types of breast cancer.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

Scientific Advisory Board 2010-2017

UT Health San Antonio

San Antonio, TX

Amelie G. Ramirez, Dr.P.H., M.P.H., an internationally recognized cancer and chronic disease health disparities researcher, is Chair and Professor of Population Health Sciences at UT Health San Antonio, where she also is founding Director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research and Associate Director of Cancer Prevention and Health Disparities at the Mays Cancer Center, UT Health San Antonio’s NCIdesignated Cancer Center. For over 30 years, she has led behavioral and communications research that reduced cancer and chronic disease, increased screening rates and clinical trial accrual, reduced tobacco use, and improved healthy eating and physical activity among U.S. Latinos. Dr. Ramirez directs several networks for Hispanic/Latino-focused research and communication, including the Salud America! national network to communicate culturally relevant news, stories, and data to raise awareness of and action for equitable places to live, learn, work, and play for U.S. Hispanic/Latino families (saludamerica.org and @SaludAmerica on social media). Her studies proved the efficacy of culturally relevant patient navigation, which reduced Hispanic/Latina breast cancer patients’ times to diagnosis and treatment, helping save their lives. She also uses innovative technology—such as text messaging, social media, and mobile apps—to reach Hispanics/Latinos in real-time with behavior change messages and cancer preventions interventions. Recognitions include the 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Health Equity Special Interest Group of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 2014 Making a Difference Award from Latinas Contra Cancer, 2011 White House “Champion of Change,” and the 2007 election to the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Ramirez’s Komen-funded research is focused on assessing the impact of a holistic intervention program, featuring culturally relevant patient navigation and digital support apps for survivors, on increasing therapy adherence and health-related quality of life among breast cancer patients, as well as optimizing and applying these approaches to improve survivorship among Hispanics/Latinas who are disproportionately affected by breast cancer.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

New York, NY

Jorge S. Reis-Filho, M.D., Ph.D., FRCPath, is the Director of Experimental Pathology and of the Experimental Pathology Fellowship Program, and an Affiliate Member of the Human Oncology & Pathogenesis Program at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). He started his independent career as the Team Leader of Molecular Pathology at The Institute of Cancer Research in London, UK, in 2006, where he ascended to the rank of Professor and Chair of Molecular Pathology in 2010. In the same year, he was awarded the USCAP Ramzi Cotran Young Investigator Award and the Future Leaders Prize by Cancer Research UK. In 2012, Dr. Reis-Filho relocated to MSKCC in New York, where he currently leads his lab and co-leads the MSKCC Genomic Instability in Breast Cancer SPORE. The Reis-Filho lab focuses on the development of biomarkers and in the establishment of a predictive classification for breast cancers based on their patterns of DNA repair defects and genetic instability, and in defining the causes and impact of intra-tumor genetic heterogeneity in cancers. His team has approached these aims using a combination of traditional pathology approaches with high-throughput genomics and single cell genomics methods. He has led projects that resulted in the development of novel single cell sequencing technologies that can be applied to archival tissue samples and has employed these methods to investigate the impact of intra-tumor genetic heterogeneity in the progression from in situto invasive breast cancer and in the development of therapy resistance. Dr. Reis-Filho has also developed new sequencing methods for circulating cell-free tumor DNA and is currently investigating the utility of these methods in the context of disease monitoring, minimal residual disease assessment, and therapy resistance. His lab has a long-standing interest and a track record in the genomic analysis of the patterns of DNA repair defects and genetic instability in breast cancers, and in the development of biomarkers to define the optimal treatment for patients whose tumors harbor specific types of DNA repair defects. Dr. Reis-Filho’s Komen-funded research is focused on understanding treatment resistance in ER+ breast cancer by developing predictors of therapy response based on loss of specific DNA repair functions.

Komen Scholar Since 2017

Advocates in Science Since 2016

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Bárbara Segarra-Vázquez, D.H.Sc., has been a faculty at the University of Puerto Rico for 34 years, and is one of the Principal Investigators of the Hispanic Clinical and Translational Research Education and Career Development (HCTRECD) program (R25MD007607) funded by NIH. Dr. Segarra-Vázquez was diagnosed with breast cancer Stage IIB on December 2003 and was in remission for 13 years. On January 2017, she had a recurrence of metastatic breast cancer to the skin. A volunteer for Komen Puerto Rico since 2006, she was Board President for four years, during which they received the “Promise Award 2013” for her commitment to innovation and forward thinking in reducing overall breast cancer mortality. She has served several times as a consumer reviewer for the Breast Cancer Research Program of the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs and traveled to Komen Global Initiative to meet with different groups that provided services to breast cancer patients and participate in a public activity of breast. She is the Chair of Steering Committee for Komen Advocates in Science, and is a member of SWOG Patient Advocates Committee and Cancer care Delivery Committee. She is also a member of ASCO CancerLinQ Patient Advisory Committee and the External Advisory Panel of the Participant Engagement-Cancer Genome Sequencing (PE-CGS) Network. She is the founder and co-investigator of HIDEAS (Hispanics Increasing Diversity to Enhance Advocacy in Science) cancer awareness. Dr. Segarra-Vázquez is a medical technologist and she received her D.H.Sc. from Nova Southeastern University.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

New York, NY

Sohrab P. Shah, Ph.D., is the Chief of Computational Oncology in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MKSCC). He previously was Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of British Columbia, and Senior Scientist, Molecular Oncology at BC Cancer Agency. Dr. Shah’s research is centered on breast and ovarian cancer genomics, developing technology and computational methods to analyze and interpret cancer genomes so we better understand their origin and evolution. His pioneer studies shed light on the nature of cancer evolution and on how the mutation landscape of a patient’s tumors changes over time. Dr. Shah was the first to study the mutation landscape of a patient population with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), showing that the patients’ tumors were at very different stages of evolution at the time of diagnosis–an important finding since those patients are primarily uniformly treated whereas a treatment taking into account their mutational landscape could be more effective. Dr. Shah’s Komen-funded research is focused on identifying distinct genomic patterns in relapsed and metastatic breast cancers by uncovering mutations that can serve as biomarkers of altered immune responses and acquired therapeutic resistance.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

Weill Cornell Medicine

New York City, NY

Rulla M. Tamimi, Sc.D. is a Professor of Population Health Sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine. Dr. Tamimi is division chief of epidemiology and associate director for population science at the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center. Dr. Tamimi’s research focus is on intermediate markers of breast cancer risk using epidemiologic resources and data sets like the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and Nurses’ Health Study II (NHSII). Her research is focused on mammographic density and how lifestyle, genetic, and molecular factors are predictors of mammographic density. Dr. Tamimi also has examined benign breast disease and the heterogeneity of breast cancer. Her studies have looked at early proliferative changes in the breast, and how morphologic and molecular changes are related to subsequent risk of breast cancer. Better molecular classification of breast tumors may provide important clues as to the biology and underlying mechanisms of breast carcinogenesis lifestyle factors, and how genetic and plasma markers influence the molecular characteristics of the breast tumor. Dr. Tamimi hopes to incorporate the full spectrum of resources including genetic variation, early life exposures, circulating markers, tissue markers and intermediate endpoints to fully develop and address hypotheses about breast cancer risk. Dr. Tamimi’s Komen funded work will utilize data from the NHS and a diverse patient population at Weill Cornell Medicine to evaluate the association between insulin-suppressing diets and the risk of developing and surviving breast cancer, as well as response to treatment. Additionally, Dr. Tamimi will evaluate the metabolic changes following insulin-suppressing diets in non-Hispanic Black and obese breast cancer patients. The goal of this project is to evaluate the potential of low carbohydrate and ketogenic diets on reducing breast cancer risk, disease progression, and response to treatment.

Komen Scholar Since 2015

Stanford University School of Medicine

Stanford, CA

Melinda Telli, M.D. is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Medical Oncology at Stanford University School of Medicine and Director of the Breast Cancer Program at the Stanford Cancer Institute. Dr. Telli’s research focuses on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of triple-negative and hereditary cancer. Her work has focused on the validation of homologous recombination deficiency biomarkers to help identify patients with triple-negative breast cancer that may specifically derive benefit from platinum chemotherapy. In addition to her involvement in the clinical development of PARP inhibitors for BRCA1/2 mutation-associated cancers, she has also explored the use of ‘beyond BRCA’ DNA repair gene mutations as potential biomarkers to select patients for PARP inhibitor therapy. Dr. Telli’s Komen funded research aims to optimize therapy for early stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients by identifying genomic instability and immune biomarkers that will predict which patients are most likely to benefit from platinum-based chemotherapy. She is also assessing a strategy of combined intratumoral plasmid IL-12 electroporation and the checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab in patients with recurrent TNBC with the goal of converting immunologically cold tumors into inflamed ones where the benefit of anti-PD-1 checkpoint blockade can then be realized.

Komen Scholar Since 2022

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Boston, MA

Sara Tolaney, M.D., M.P.H. is the Chief of the Division of Breast Oncology at Dana- Farber Cancer Institute and is internationally recognized for her research in breast cancer. She also serves as Associate Director of the Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancers and is a Senior Physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on the development of novel therapies in the treatment of breast cancer and developing more effective and less toxic treatment approaches. Her work has demonstrated that a relatively low risk regimen, paclitaxel and trastuzumab, is beneficial in women with early-stage node-negative HER2-positive cancers, and this work has been incorporated into national and international guidelines. She has developed several follow-up studies looking at novel approaches to early stage HER2-positive disease, including use of T-DM1 in this setting, and has also played a significant role in development of CDK 4/6 inhibitors, antibody drug conjugates, and immunotherapy in breast cancer. She currently chairs several registration studies in these areas and also leads many investigator-initiated trials. Dr. Tolaney’s Komen-funded research is focused on developing combination therapies for metastatic breast cancer subtypes that normally do not benefit from immunotherapy by determining the impact of including a novel antibody drug conjugate to enhance the immune response.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC

Melissa Troester, Ph.D. is a Professor of Epidemiology and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, co-leader of the Cancer Epidemiology program in Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility. The Troester laboratory studies breast cancer and benign breast disease using genomic, molecular pathology, and epidemiologic approaches. Her transdisciplinary training includes basic research in molecular biology, observational pathology in large studies, and epidemiologic research methods. Breast cancer disparities are a major focus of Dr. Troester’s work, including a current National Cancer Institute (NCI) R01 and an NCI Specialized Program of Research Excellence project. She is the Principal Investigator on the Carolina Breast Cancer Study (CBCS), a study of breast cancer epidemiology and biology that oversampled younger and Black women to better understand disease outcomes in these groups. Dr. Troester has experience working in consortia, including the African American Breast Cancer Epidemiology and Risk (AMBER) consortium, the Breast Cancer Association Consortium, and the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project, among others. Dr. Troester has published more than 150 papers focused on breast cancer, breast microenvironment, and stromal-epithelial interactions.

Komen Scholar Since 2020

Dana Farber Cancer Institute; Broad Institute

Boston, MA

Nikhil Wagle, M.D. is an Assistant Professor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, a medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and an Institute Member at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. He is also the Director of the Count Me In initiative at the Broad/DFCI. Dr. Wagle leads a translational research program in cancer genomics and cancer precision medicine, with a particular focus on metastatic breast cancer. The major goals of his work are to better understand the biology of cancer and to develop new ways to overcome or prevent drug resistance in patients with advanced cancer. Ultimately, his research aims to develop new therapeutic strategies and to identify characteristics of tumors that might improve clinical decision-making for patients. His early contributions to science include pioneering the development of next generation panel sequencing in archival tumor samples, an approach that has become the standard for tumor genomic profiling around the world, as well as the development of novel methods for the clinical analysis and interpretation of genomic information for use by clinicians and patients. He has made major contributions to the understanding of the genomics of metastatic breast cancer, particularly through identifying multiple clinical mechanisms of resistance to endocrine therapies, CDK4/6 inhibitors, and other therapies in ER+ metastatic breast cancer. Dr. Wagle developed and directs the Metastatic Breast Cancer Project (mbcproject.org), a nationwide patient-driven research initiative that engages patients with advanced breast cancer through social media and seeks to empower them to accelerate cancer research through sharing their samples and clinical information. Based on the success of the MBC project, Dr. Wagle developed the Count Me In initiative, which has now launched projects for patients with breast cancer, angiosarcoma, metastatic prostate cancer, esophageal and stomach cancer, brain cancer, osteosarcoma, with several more projects in the works including in colorectal cancer and leiomyosarcoma. Dr. Wagle’s Komen funded research project seeks to determine if resistance to targeted therapies in patients with MBC involves somatic genomic alterations or cellular changes which can be identified by genomic analysis.

Komen Scholar Since 2018

Advocates in Science Since 2013

Landenberg, PA

Meryl Weinreb, M.A., is a retired pharmaceutical marketing executive with extensive experience in oncology – both from an industry and personal perspective. As a 3-time breast cancer survivor, she was uniquely equipped to successfully lead consumer marketing strategy and execution for AstraZeneca’s US oncology portfolio. She was responsible for a number of awarding-winning patient education and support programs for breast, prostate and lung cancer therapies. She led innovative adherence programs and worked with company researchers to create patient-friendly PI’s and clinical protocols. For 7 years, Ms. Weinreb served on the Executive Board of the Philadelphia affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. She continues to serve as the affiliate’s Education Chair and leads public policy initiatives for Komen’s Advocacy Alliance in Pennsylvania and Delaware. She has also served as a member of Komen’s Advocacy Advisory Taskforce. In 2013, she was invited to join Komen’s Advocates in Science Program, and in 2018 became a member of its steering committee and a Komen Scholar. She currently chairs the AIS Committee on Peer Review and is Vice Chair of the AIS Education and Training Committee. She has served as a consumer reviewer for the Department of Defense’s Breast Cancer Research Program, Komen’s Postdoctoral Fellowship and Career Catalyst awards, and The Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas. She assists researchers – locally, across the country and sometimes abroad – with their grant applications and currently is collaborating as an advocate on several breast cancer research projects.

Komen Scholar Since 2016

Huntsman Cancer Institute

Salt Lake City, UT

Alana L. Welm, Ph.D., is the Ralph E. and Willia T. Main Presidential Endowed Chair in Cancer Research, Professor in the Department of Oncological Sciences, Senior Director for Basic Science and Investigator at the Huntsman Comprehensive Cancer Institute, University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT. Dr. Welm’s research focuses on two major emphases centered on breast cancer metastases: better understanding the biology of metastasis in order to develop new therapies, and creating innovative models of human breast cancer that more accurately reflect behavior of tumors and response to therapy. Having discovered that the macrophage stimulating protein (MSP) – a protein that alters activity of cells from the immune system – is an important facilitator of breast cancer metastasis in humans, Dr. Welm studies the mechanisms that lead MSP and its receptor Ron kinase to promote metastasis, and the mechanisms by which MSP induces destruction of bones in metastatic breast cancer. Dr. Welm’s Komen-funded research is focused on exploring new approaches to stimulate the immune system by determining the role of a key mediator of breast cancer metastasis on the activity of immune cells and their ability to target tumor cells for destruction.