Upcoming Research Talks
DCP Early Career Scientist Spotlight Research Seminar Series (Upcoming Research Talks)
Thursday, February 12, 2026 | 11am EST
“Symptom management needs and interventions among individuals living with metastatic cancer"
Claire C. Conley, PhD
Assistant Professor of Oncology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Claire C. Conley, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Oncology and a member of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. She obtained her PhD in clinical health psychology from the Ohio State University in 2018. Dr. Conley’s program of research involves two complementary areas in cancer prevention: early detection among women at increased risk for breast cancer, and symptom management among people living with advanced cancer. Dr. Conley aims to promote health behavior change and improve quality of life in the context of cancer through innovative behavioral interventions. She has received research funding from the National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society, and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
"Molecular Alterations Associated with Airway Injury & Lung Squamous Precancerous Lesions to Inform Early Lung Cancer Intervention"
Sarah Mazzilli, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Computational Biomedicine, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
As an Assistant Professor at Boston University, Dr Mazzilli’s research program focuses on understanding the epithelial and immune changes that drive the progression of premalignant lung lesions to invasive lung cancer, with the goal of identifying high-risk individuals and testing targeted interventions. Building on prior work characterizing mouse models of lung premalignancy and identifying metabolic and immune alterations linked to smoking and lesion progression (Cancer Prev Res 2013, Clin Cancer Res 2017, Nature Comm 2019), her lab now employs cutting-edge single-cell and spatial technologies to study human and mouse precancerous lung lesions. Recent findings include spatial immune profiling evidencing immune evasion in lung adenocarcinoma precursors (Cancer Res. 2023) and identifying miRNAs that suppress antigen presentation in progressing lung squamous precursor lesions (biorxiv, 2025). Furthering her translational work, she continues to characterize mouse models to establish how accurately they can reflect immune and epithelial drivers of lung carcinogenesis for future preclinical studies.
Monday, February 23, 2026 | 1pm EST
“Early onset colorectal cancer detection: two viable strategies”
Joshua Demb, PhD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Medicine and Applied Sciences, University of California San Diego
Dr. Joshua Demb is a National Cancer Institute K99/R00 award-funded assistant professor at University of California, San Diego. Dr. Demb’s research interests are at the intersection of cancer epidemiology and health services research. Over the last 10 years, his work has focused on the overlapping roles of cancer screening and diagnostic work-up to maximize early cancer detection, particularly among adults under age 50 at risk for colorectal cancer (CRC). His current K99/R00-funded project seeks an optimal CRC screening strategy among adults ages 45-49. He is leading a pragmatic trial comparing mailed fecal immunochemical test outreach to mailed Cologuard outreach among adults ages 45-49. Dr. Demb is also investigating early CRC detection among at-risk adults ages 18-44 who present with potential red flag signs and symptoms, with the goal of risk stratifying these adults for more efficient and timely diagnostic work-up for CRC and other concerning gastrointestinal conditions.
“The Perfect Pair: Engineering Drug Synergy and Nano Drug Delivery Precision for Smarter Cancer Prevention”
Preshita P. Desai, B. Pharm, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Western University of Health Sciences
Dr. Desai received her Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2017 from the Institute of Chemical Technology, India as an INSPIRE and UKIERI Visiting Fellow (University of Bradford, UK). She joined Western University of Health Sciences College of Pharmacy, USA in 2017 as a Post-Doctoral Fellow, became Research Scientist in 2018 and transitioned to a Faculty position in 2022.
Dr. Desai’s research focuses on the identification and repurposing of chemopreventive agents, coupled with the design of smart nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems to achieve selectively enhanced and targeted cancer chemoprevention. Her laboratory has demonstrated a strong record of innovation and productivity, reflected in numerous scientific presentations, awards, peer-reviewed publications, extramural research grants, book chapters, and three granted patents. The ultimate goal of her translational research is to develop and clinically translate safe, effective, and patient-compliant chemopreventive medications.
Dr. Desai’s research focuses on the identification and repurposing of chemopreventive agents, coupled with the design of smart nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems to achieve selectively enhanced and targeted cancer chemoprevention. Her laboratory has demonstrated a strong record of innovation and productivity, reflected in numerous scientific presentations, awards, peer-reviewed publications, extramural research grants, book chapters, and three granted patents. The ultimate goal of her translational research is to develop and clinically translate safe, effective, and patient-compliant chemopreventive medications.
Monday, March 9, 2026 | 1pm EST
“Microbes, Hormones, and Diet: Translating Microbiome Science into Breast Cancer Prevention and Control”
Tengteng Wang, PhD
Assistant Professor, Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes, Rutgers Cancer Institute, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Dr. Tengteng Wang is an Assistant Professor in the Section of Cancer Epidemiology and Health Outcomes at Rutgers Cancer Institute. Before joining Rutgers in 2024, she was an Instructor at Harvard Medical School, where she also completed T32 postdoctoral training. Dr. Wang earned her Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. As a cancer epidemiologist with medical training, Dr. Wang’s research focuses on identifying modifiable factors and molecular biomarkers that influence cancer etiology and progression. Her research integrates high dimensional multi-omics data in cancer epidemiologic studies, with a particular emphasis on the human microbiome, to unravel novel biological mechanisms underlying cancer development, primarily in breast cancer. Supported by an NCI Early K99/R00 Award and several pilot awards, her current work systematically investigates the associations among the human microbiome (in both high- and low-biomass sample types), host exposures, and benign breast disease or breast cancer. Her long-term goal is to advance microbiome-informed risk and prognosis prediction, early detection, and targeted cancer prevention strategies.
"Decoding the Immune Landscape of Mismatch Repair–Deficient Colorectal Carcinogenesis"
Abel Martel Martel, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Clinical Cancer Prevention, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Dr. Martel earned his master's degree and Ph.D. from the University of Salamanca, Spain. During his graduate studies, he characterized at the molecular level the carcinogenesis in patients with early-onset colorectal cancer, specifically investigating NOMO1 loss and its contribution to invasion and metastasis. After completing his Ph.D., Dr. Martel joined The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Clinical Cancer Prevention, where he focuses on cancer immune interception for Lynch Syndrome (LS). Dr. Martel's research leverages spatial transcriptomics and proteomics to elucidate immuneepithelial interactions across the colorectal carcinogenesis axis in LS carriers. His work involves spatial mapping of LS neoantigen-specific T cell clonotypes and their functional phenotypes across normal mucosa, early neoplastic lesions, and invasive tumors. To validate these findings, he has implemented innovative in vivo and ex vivo experimental platforms, including humanized HLA transgenic mouse models and patient-derived organoids from LS carriers, to evaluate the immunogenic potential and preventive efficacy of novel LS neoantigen-based vaccination strategies and immunomodulatory agents.
Tuesday, March 24, 2026 | 11am EST
“Targeting Integrative Oncology Interventions for Symptom Management Among Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors”
Robert Knoerl, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor, University of Michigan School of Nursing, Ann Arbor MI
Dr. Robert Knoerl’s program of research aims to develop options for managing cancer treatment-related side effects that are effective and have fewer, or no, side effects. To this end, Dr. Knoerl has led clinical trials to explore the potential of non-pharmacological interventions, such as yoga, music therapy, and cognitive behavioral pain management, to reduce the occurrence of cancer-treatment-related side effects and improve cancer survivors' quality of life. In particular, Dr. Knoerl has focused the testing of such nonpharmacological interventions for remote delivery and/or adolescent and young adult cancer survivors. Dr. Knoerl received postdoctoral training at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (2017-2019) and is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s BSN (2014) and PhD (2017) nursing programs.
"Lifestyle as an Adjuvant to Cancer Immunotherapy"
Marlies Meisel, PhD
Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh
Dr. Marlies Meisel is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, where her research focuses on the complex interactions between gut microbes and the host immune system in health, cancer, and autoimmunity.
Following her PhD in Austria studying T cell autoimmunity, her postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago uncovered mechanisms by which microbes influence intestinal inflammation and cancer development.
Her current lab investigates how the gut microbiota modulates tumor immunity, while also exploring the modulation of gut metabolites through diet and exercise to impact systemic immunity in the context of cancer.
Following her PhD in Austria studying T cell autoimmunity, her postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago uncovered mechanisms by which microbes influence intestinal inflammation and cancer development.
Her current lab investigates how the gut microbiota modulates tumor immunity, while also exploring the modulation of gut metabolites through diet and exercise to impact systemic immunity in the context of cancer.
Monday, April 6, 2026 | 11am EST
“Enhancing Surgical Precision in Head and Neck Cancer with Intraoperative Fluorescence Imaging”
Nitish Khurana, PhD
Research Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah
Nitish Khurana, Ph.D., is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics at the University of Utah College of Pharmacy. His research focuses on the development of translational nanomedicine and imaging technologies for cancer prevention, treatment, and critical care. He has broad expertise in drug delivery, biomaterials, and image-guided oncology, with an emphasis on advancing technologies from bench to bedside. One of Dr. Khurana’s current work centers on fluorescence-guided surgery for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, where he is investigating the use of indocyanine green (ICG) and engineered extracellular vesicles to improve intraoperative tumor margin visualization and enable real-time disease detection. He has authored multiple peer reviewed publications and actively contributes to multidisciplinary collaborations at the interface of pharmaceutics, oncology, and pharmacological sciences. His long-term goal is to establish an independent research program focused on developing innovative imaging and drug delivery platforms that enhance precision cancer care and patient outcomes.
“Advancing Precision Health Symptom Science Through the Evaluation of Biological, Social, and Environmental Risk Factors in Patients Living with Cancer”
Carolyn Harris, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor, Department of Physiological Nursing, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco
Dr. Carolyn Harris is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physiological Nursing at the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing. Her program of research is focused on evaluations of the biological, social, and environmental factors that underlie single symptoms and symptom clusters in patients living with cancer. This research will lead to the development and testing of personalized interventions for patients undergoing cancer treatment to prevent or ameliorate this symptom burden. Currently, she is leading projects to characterize the symptom experience of patients with cutaneous melanoma receiving immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy and evaluate the influence of attributes within the social and built environment on symptom burden in oncology patients receiving chemotherapy. Dr. Harris received a PhD in Nursing from the University of California, San Francisco and completed two postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Pittsburgh (NCI Pathway to Independence Award for Early-Stage Postdoctoral Researchers, K99CA286967; Targeted Research and Academic Program for Nurses in Genomics, T32NR009759).
Thursday, May 7, 2026 | 11am EST
"Adding the Spatial Dimension: Insights From Spatial Omics in Hematologic Malignancies"
David Cordas dos Santos, MD
Instructor, Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
David Cordas dos Santos, MD, is an Instructor at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, working in Irene Ghobrial’s laboratory in close collaboration with the Broad Institute. After earning his medical degree from the University of Heidelberg, he began his clinical training in hematology and oncology at LMU University Hospital in Munich before transitioning to Dana-Farber to pursue translational research in plasma-cell disorders. His work focuses on hematologic malignancies such as multiple myeloma and Waldenström macroglobulinemia, as well as T cell–based therapies including CAR-T cells and bispecific antibodies. By integrating multi-omics profiling with spatial biology approaches, his research aims to uncover mechanisms driving progression from precursor to overt malignancy and resistance to immunotherapy. He is an investigator in the Myeloma Multidimensional Pre-Cancer Atlas of the NIH Human Tumor Atlas Network and is part of multi-institutional collaborations to develop clinically relevant prediction models.
“Spatiotemporal Mapping of Tumor Innervation to Predict Aggressive Prostate Cancer at Early Stages”
Sebnem Ece Eksi, PhD
Assistant Professor, Division of Oncological Sciences, Oregon Health & Science University
Dr. Sebnem Ece Eksi is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Oncological Sciences at Oregon Health & Science University. Her laboratory investigates how tumor-innervating nerves influence cancer progression and therapy response, with the goal of improving early detection and prevention in prostate and pancreatic cancers. Using high-plex spatial proteomics and computational pathology, her team develops and applies spatial biomarkers that distinguish indolent from aggressive tumors and identify patients who may benefit from early treatment. Dr. Eksi integrates spatial proteomics with clinical imaging data such as multiparametric MRI from major early-detection trials such as Re-IMAGINE to uncover nerve-associated risk signatures. Her research advances biomarker discovery for precision patient stratification, guiding intervention decisions, and reducing overtreatment through biologically informed early-detection strategies.
Tuesday, May 26, 2026 | 11am EST
"Nutrient Stress to Neoplasia: Uncovering Metabolic Drivers of Hepatocellular Transformation"
Jessica E. S. Shay, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, University of Utah
Dr. Jessica E. S. Shay is a physician-scientist whose career bridges clinical hepatology and metabolic research. She earned her M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, where she developed an early interest in how metabolism regulates tissue repair and cancer. She completed internal medicine residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital, gastroenterology and hepatology fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, and postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, studying how dietary and metabolic cues influence stem cell and tissue behavior. Dr. Shay is now an Assistant Professor in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at the University of Utah, with additional appointments in the newly renamed Center for Metabolic Health and affiliate status at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Her focus is on how metabolic reprogramming in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) shapes hepatocyte identity, regeneration, and tumorigenesis, with the goal of identifying metabolic strategies to prevent liver cancer.
“Fitness Assessment and Optimization in Older Adults with AML: A Focus on Sarcopenia”
Samuel Yates, MD, MSc
Fellow (PGY-6), Department of Hematology and Oncology, University of Chicago
The long-term goal of Dr. Yates’s research is to improve the fitness for chemotherapy of older adults with leukemia via targeting sarcopenia to improve physical function. He completed an MD/MSc at Wake Forest with a master’s thesis assessing the prognostic significance of bioelectrical impedance analysis for early death in adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). He built upon this work with an investigator-initiated trial (NCT05458258) assessing the impact of sarcopenia in addition to the gold standard fitness assessment tool, a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA), on early death in older adults with AML. He is currently leading a pilot feasibility trial of a nutrition and exercise intervention in adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (NCT06785324). Upon completion of his fellowship from the University of Chicago he will join the faculty at Wake Forest as a physician scientist in the Department of Cancer Medicine and sections of Geriatric Oncology and Leukemia.
Tuesday, June 9, 2026 | 11am EST
"ONC201 for Colorectal Cancer Prevention"
Alexander Raufi, MD
Director, Clinical Research, Division of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Brown University Health Cancer Institute
Alexander G. Raufi, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. As a hematologist/oncologist at Brown University Health Cancer Institute, he specializes in Gastrointestinal Oncology and serves as the Director of the Gastrointestinal Clinical Research Program. Dr. Raufi received his medical degree from The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. He completed his residency training in internal medicine at the University of California, Irvine in Orange, California, and his fellowship training in hematology/oncology at Columbia University/New York-Presbyterian in New York, New York. Dr. Raufi conducts both laboratory and clinical research at Brown University’s Legorreta Cancer Center and Brown University Health. His research interests include the development of novel immunotherapy combinations in gastrointestinal malignancies and preventive strategies for gastrointestinal cancers. He is a recipient of a 2019 Young Investigator Award from the Conquer Cancer Foundation/American Society of Clinical Oncology.
“Better Together: Advancing Cancer Survivorship Through Dyadic Lifestyle Interventions”
Meghan Skiba, PhD, MS, MPH, RDN
Assistant Professor, University of Arizona College of Nursing, Tucson, AZ
Dr. Meghan Skiba is an Assistant Professor at the University of Arizona College of Nursing and a member of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at the University of Arizona Cancer Center. Prior, Dr. Skiba completed graduate training at the University of Arizona, a dietetic internship through the University of Houston, and a postdoctoral fellowship at Oregon Health & Science Knight Cancer Institute. A registered dietitian nutritionist, Dr. Skiba's research focuses on promoting healthy aging in cancer survivors and their caregivers through culturally and regionally tailored diet and physical activity interventions. Her work integrates of caregivers into survivorship care and employs both community engagement strategies as well as digital health technologies to enhance reach and impact. She currently leads projects investigating the effects of dyadic lifestyle interventions on physical and psychosocial outcomes in cancer survivors and their caregivers.
Tuesday, June 23, 2026 | 11am EST
“Mechanisms that link diet and aging in driving intestinal cancer risk”
Jiahn Choi, PhD
Assistant Professor, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Our research centers on understanding how intestinal stem cells and their surrounding niche adapt to environmental stressors—such as aging and diet—and how these adaptations influence tissue homeostasis, inflammation, and cancer risk. Our work integrates single-cell omics, in vivo imaging, and functional genomics to uncover how stem cell plasticity and niche interactions are reprogrammed in response to modifiable risk factors, including a Western-style diet. We have demonstrated that Western-style diet reshapes intestinal homeostasis by altering the primary stem cell population, thereby remodeling lineage differentiation and contributing to a pro-tumorigenic state. Building on these findings, our ongoing research aims to deconvolve the mechanisms by which cellular adaptation contributes to pathogenesis, including cancer.
By defining the mechanisms underlying mucosal remodeling and pathogenesis, our goal is to develop preventive strategies that preserve epithelial integrity and reduce the risk of diet- and age-associated diseases.
By defining the mechanisms underlying mucosal remodeling and pathogenesis, our goal is to develop preventive strategies that preserve epithelial integrity and reduce the risk of diet- and age-associated diseases.
“Developing and Testing Integrative Therapies for Cancer Symptom Management”
Kevin T. Liou, MD
Assistant Attending, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Kevin Liou is an integrative medicine specialist, licensed acupuncturist, and assistant attending physician at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). He obtained his undergraduate and medical degrees from Brown University. He completed his internal medicine residency at Weill Cornell Medicine, followed by an integrative oncology research fellowship at MSK. He is the principal investigator on several clinical trials investigating acupuncture and music therapy for cancer symptom management. His research has been supported by the National Cancer Institute, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the Gabrielle's Angel Foundation, the Chanel Endowment for Survivorship Research, and MSK's Division of Subspecialty Medicine. He is also the director of MSK's integrative medicine fellowship program.