Research Faculty and Funding
The JCRC provides funds to support scientists, researchers, and students with cancer research focus. Our dedicated team is at the forefront of cancer research, pioneering innovative approaches and treatments.
The Johnson Cancer Research Center advances cancer research at K-State and helps train the next generation of researchers. It supports faculty, undergraduate and graduate students through competitive award programs. All JCRC faculty members are eligible to apply for awards and sponsor student applications. If you would like to apply for center membership, click here.
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Meet the Center Faculty Researchers: The Johnson Cancer Research Center’s multidisciplinary approach to cancer research makes the most of the knowledge and talents of numerous excellent scientists at K-State. Below is a list of our faculty research members and their areas of study.
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ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY |
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Dr. Matt Basel |
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| Develops better cancer models for translational research and using targeted nanotechnology and hyperthermia in cancer therapy. more details |
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Dr. Frank Blecha |
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| Retired Professor of Kansas State University |
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Dr. Jeff Comer |
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| Uses computers to study new materials (nanotechnology) for targeted delivery of cancer drugs to cancer cells. more details |
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Dr. Peying Fong |
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| Studies regulation, structure and function of ion channels and transporters in macromolecular complexes. more details |
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Dr. Meena Kumari |
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| Studies the addition of sugars to proteins and the significance of increases in this process in some gastrointestinal cancers. more details |
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Dr. David Poole |
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| Studies oxygen transport with respect to vascular and microcirculatory control and the matching of oxygen delivery to the energetic requirements of tissues in health and disease. more details |
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Dr. Bruce Schultz |
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| Studies hormone-induced changes in epithelial function. more details |
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Dr. Mark Weiss |
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| Studies the potential use of stem cells for gene delivery vehicles, especially to brain tumors. more details |
ART |
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Dr. Shreepad Joglekar |
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| Exploring natural, constructed, and intellectual spaces have been a dominant theme in his work. more details |
BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOPHYSICS |
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Dr. Timothy Durrett |
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| Studies how different enzymes recognize the specific compounds that they modify. more details |
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Dr. Brandon Garcia |
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| Studies the structure and function of innate immune proteins involved in human diseases including cancer. more details |
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Dr. Brian Geisbrecht |
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| Studies structural approaches to understanding macromolecular function in normal, pathogenic and cancerous states. more details |
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Dr. Erika Geisbrecht |
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| Studies signal transduction pathways essential to normal embryonic development. more details |
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Dr. Shijiao Huang |
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| Studies the mechanisms of aging and to develops clinically relevant drugs to delay aging and and prevent age-related diseases including cancer. more details |
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Dr. Michael Kanost |
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| Studies immunological mechanisms relevant to human cancers. more details |
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Dr. Phillip E. Klebba |
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| Studies iron deprivation as a means of retarding cancer cell growth and as a therapy to block microbial infections in cancer patients. more details |
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Dr. Om Prakash |
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| Studies anticancer agents using multidimensional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy and computer aided molecular modeling. more details |
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Dr. John Tomich |
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Retired Professor |
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Dr. Anna Zolkiewska |
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| Studies cell-cell interactions and communications in cancer. more details |
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Dr. Michal Zolkiewski |
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Studies the stress-response and protein quality-control pathways. more details |
BIOLOGY |
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Dr. Katsura Asano |
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| Studies the control of protein synthesis and the alterations in gene expression that can lead to cancer. more details |
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Dr. Susan Brown |
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| Studies genes important to normal development and cancer. more details |
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Dr. Keith Chapes |
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Former Interim Director Johnson Cancer Research Center Retired Professor |
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Dr. Walter Dodds |
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| Studies nitrate and drinking water quality. more details |
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Dr. Sherry Fleming |
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| Studies complement cascade and immune cells in cancer and other diseases. more details |
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Dr. Revathi Govind |
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| Studies pathogenic mechanisms of anaerobic bacterial pathogen Clostridium difficile. more details |
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Dr. Loretta Johnson |
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| Studies genes involved in protecting against heavy metal poisoning and associated cancers. more details |
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Dr. Sonny Lee |
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| Studies the influence of microbiome to cancer development and therapeutics. more details |
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Dr. Jocelyn McDonald |
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| Studies how cells move and invade tissues in cancer. more details |
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Dr. Kristin Michel |
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| Studies serpin function in mosquito-transmitted malaria, and potential relationship to human cancer. more details |
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Dr. Beth Montelone |
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Senior Associate V.P. for Research Studies genes involved in DNA repair in yeast whose counterparts help prevent cancer in humans. more details |
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Dr. Kathrin Schrick |
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| Studies interactions of lipids/sterols and regulatory proteins that are key to cell division and development. more details |
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Dr. Michael Veeman |
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| Studies the cellular mechanisms of embryonic morphogenesis in simple chordates. more details |
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Dr. Ruth Welti |
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| Studies the roles of lipid signaling and lipid metabolism in cancer. more details |
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Dr. Anna Zinovyeva |
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| Studies how genes are regulated and how the changes in gene regulation that lead to cancer can occur. more details |
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING |
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Dr. Placidus Amama |
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| Studies nanocarbon-based platforms for cancer therapeutics. more details |
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Dr. Won Min Park |
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| Studies protein self-assembly for the design of nanomaterials for cancer detection and therapy. more details |
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Dr. Davood Pourkargar |
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| Uses computer-based modeling to improve predictions of the progression pattern of cancer in the humans. more details |
CHEMISTRY |
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Dr. Christer Aakeröy |
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| Studies chemical approaches to maximize the effectiveness of anti-cancer drugs. more details |
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Dr. Patricia Calvo |
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| Studies the use of polymers for drug delivery and internal radiation therapy. more details |
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Dr. Christopher Culbertson |
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| Studies signals within cells to understand how misregulation of the signals leads to cancers. Is also developing a "lab-on-a-chip" cancer early-detection test. more details |
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Dr. Tendai Gadzikwa |
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| Studies the use of the scaffold of crystalline, multifunctional, nanoporous framework materials to construct multi-tasking drug delivery systems that target cancer cells. more details |
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Dr. Daniel Higgins |
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| Studies the use of multiphoton methods to trigger anticancer drugs. more details |
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Dr. Takashi Ito |
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| Studies new techniques for sampling biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. more details |
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Dr. Jun Li |
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| Studies nanotechnology for early cancer diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring. more details |
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Dr. Ping Li |
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| Conducts mechanistic studies of cancerous proteins, and synthesis of their inhibitors. more details |
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Dr. Socrates Munoz |
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| Development of new synthetic routes for the preparation of organofluorine and sulfur-containing compounds for therapeutic applications including cancer therapy. more details |
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Dr. Ryan J. Rafferty |
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| Studies blood-brain barrier penetration for treatment of brain cancers and works to develop new cancer drug delivery methods. more details |
CLINICAL SCIENCES |
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Dr. Chieko Azuma |
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| Studies the biological effects of therapeutic radiation, tumor biology and targeted radiotherapy. more details |
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Dr. Mary Lynn Higginbotham |
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| Studies the diagnosis and treatment of feline lymphoma as well as clinical trials involving treatment of cancer in animals. more details |
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Dr. Kimberly Reeds |
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| Studies the impacts of nutrition and targeted therapies on veterinary oncology patients as well as clinical trials involving treatment of cancer in animals. more details |
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Dr. Thomas Schermerhorn |
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| Studies cellular secretion and protein movement in normal and cancer cells. more details |
COMPUTER SCIENCE |
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Dr. Hande McGinty |
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| Studies research focuses on agriculutre, food and bio-ontologies and the applications for machine learning and artificial itelligence. more details |
DANCE |
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Dr. Kate Digby |
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| Certified instructor of Moving for Life Dance Exercise for Recovery classes designed to support cancer patients, survivors and their families. more details |
DIAGNOSTIC MEDICINE PATHOBIOLOGY |
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Dr. Pankaj Baral |
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| Studies the role of lung-innervating neurons in lung adenocarcinoma development. more details |
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Dr. Jamie Retallick |
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| Studies the pathogenesis of tumors and cancer cells. more details |
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Dr. Laura Miller |
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| Combines advanced techniques to map how genes and immune cells interact within diseased tissues, paving the way for better understanding and treatment of cancer. more details |
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Dr. Waithaka Mwangi |
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| Development of new strategies for safely using novel cow antibodies to fight cancer in humans. The lab will develop special cow antibodies that target molecules involved in cancer. more details |
ELECTRICAL & COMPUTER ENGINEERING |
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Dr. Ninghao "Eric" Zhu |
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| Studies gene expression during collective cancer invasion with live cell RNA biosensor and tissue-engineered tumor microenvironment on a chip. more details |
ENGINEERING EXTENSION |
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ENTOMOLOGY |
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Dr. Kristopher Silver |
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| Studies the mechanisms of RNA interference and how they can be applied to cancer treatment. more details |
FOOD, NUTRITION, DIETETICS & HEALTH |
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Dr. Mark Haub |
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| Studies effects of protein, grain-based foods, and supplements on colon cancer and whole-body health outcomes using clinical trials with human subjects. more details |
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Dr. Brian Lindshield |
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| Studies the potential of foods and/or dietary supplements to decrease cancer incidence and progression. more details |
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Dr. Valentina Trinetta |
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| Studies foodborne pathogens and antimicrobial resistance on gut microbiome and implication for anticancer drug resistance. more details |
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Dr. Weiqun (George) Wang |
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| Studies cancer prevention by dietary calorie restriction, exercise and plant chemicals. more details |
GEOGRAPHY |
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Dr. Max Lu |
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| Studies geographic differentials in cancer incidence and mortality rates using spatial statistics and geographic information systems (GIS) technology. more details |
GEOLOGY |
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Dr. Matthew Kirk |
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| Studies the biogeochemistry and hydrogeology of aqueous systems, with an emphasis on groundwater. more details |
HORTICULTURE |
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Dr. Sunghun Park |
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| Studies metabolic engineering of flavonoids to prevent cancer. more details |
KINESIOLOGY |
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Dr. Carl Ade |
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| Studies mechanistic underpinnings and clinical features of cardiovascular damage resulting from anti-cancer treatments. more details |
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Dr. Brad Behnke |
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| Studies manipulation of tumor microenvironments to enhance conventional cancer therapy outcomes. more details |
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Dr. Gina Besenyi |
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| Studies the impact of outdoor, nature-based physical activity on physical and mental health and the prevention and treatment of chronic disease. more details |
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Dr. Joshua Carr |
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Studies neuromuscular adaptations to muscle weakness, atrophy, and chemotherapy-induced neuropathies, focusing on individualized exercise interventions to restore function and address cancer-related muscle wasting and rehabilitation...more details |
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Dr. David Poole |
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| Studies oxygen transport with respect to vascular and microcirculatory control and the matching of oxygen delivery to the energetic requirements of tissues in health and disease. more details |
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Dr. Nicholas Wallace |
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| Studies HPV biology to improve treatment options for the cancers caused by these viruses. more details |
KINESIOLOGY PHYSICIAN ASSIST. PROGRAM |
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Dr. Carl Ade |
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| Studies mechanistic underpinnings and clinical features of cardiovascular damage resulting from anti-cancer treatments. more details |
MECHANICAL & NUCLEAR ENGINEERING |
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Dr. Amir Bahadori |
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| Studies ways to evaluate and reduce cancer risk from radiation exposure. more details |
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Dr. Shih-Kang (Scott) Fan |
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| Liquid biopsy and 3D bioprinting to study cancer with electrically-driven droplets (picoliter-microliter) on an electromicrofluidics platform. more details |
PHILOSOPHY |
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Dr. Shay Logan |
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| Studies ethical and decision-theoretic questions about cancer treatment regimens. more details |
PLANT PATHOLOGY |
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Dr. Richard Todd |
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| Studies how transcription factors—regulators of cell growth involved in many cancers—are themselves regulated. more details |
PHYSICS |
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Dr. Bret Flanders |
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| Studies the use of nanoscale fiber scalpels to sample tumors and cancer cells. more details |
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Dr. Jeremy Schmit |
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| Studies formulation strategies for protein-based drugs. more details |
PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES |
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Dr. Heather Bailey |
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| Studies cognitive and neurophysiological changes associated with aging and various pathologies, including cancer and chemotherapy. more details |
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Dr. Charles Pickens |
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| Studies thalamocortical circuits, and examine models of several different disorders. more details |
SOCIOLOGY, ANTROPOLOGY & SOCIAL WORK |
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Dr. Jung Sim Jun |
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| Studies cancer health disparities among ethnic/racial minority groups and culturally appropriate and technology-supported health education and intervention strategies. more details |
STATISTICS |
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Dr. Cen Wu |
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| Studies the integration of multiple types of cancer genomic data to better elucidate cancer etiology and prognosis. more details |