Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Chief of Gynecologic Oncology
Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
Research
Research in the tumor micro-environment, cancer-related hormone signaling pathways and novel drug discovery, health services, and clinical trials of gynecologic cancers and pre-cancers is conducted by the Gynecologic Oncology research team.
ACTIVE:
Title: Novel see and treat strategies for cervical cancer prevention in low-resource settings
Major Goals: The goal of this R01 is for PIs, Ramanujam, Sapiro and Katz to work in partnership to develop a technological strategy to transform the screening, diagnosis, and treatment paradigm for cervical cancer prevention in low-resource communities. The proposed research is significantly relevant to public health due to the potential to contribute to the improvement of cervical cancer prevention, and thus the reduction in mortality rate of this imminently preventable disease.
PD/PI: Ramanujam, Nirmala
Title: Duke Women's Reproductive Health Research Scholars
Major Goals: The Duke Women's Reproductive Health Research training program combines cutting-edge research experiences with an innovative and proven career development framework to help develop the next generation of obstetrician-gynecologist clinician-scientists.
PD/PI: Barber, Matthew
PENDING:
Title: Molecular classification of endometrial advanced stage cancers and association with survival outcomes: Ancillary analysis of GOG-0258
Major Goals: The successful completion of this project could alter the paradigm for adjuvant therapy and individualize treatment for women with advanced endometrial cancer, and inform future clinical trial design.
PD/PI: Secord, Angeles Alvarez
Title: Molecular classification of endometrial cancers, survival outcomes, racial disparities, and treatment
Major Goals: Major Task 1: Determine whether molecular classification ECs using the ProMisE algorithm and SGPS from women is (i) predictive of treatment efficacy and (ii) prognostic for survival. Major Task 2: Define whether TP53 mutations and IGF-1 signaling pathway activation are more frequent in Black compared to White women with EC and are associated with worse outcomes. Major Task 3. Conduct a pilot study of adjuvant molecular-based therapy utilizing ProMisE and SGPS in women with stage I high-intermediate risk EC through the ECMT2 Consortium.
PD/PI: Secord, Angeles Alvarez
Lab Members
The Division of Gynecologic Oncology's faculty are involved in a broad range of research that includes translational laboratory work, clinical trials and health services focusing on gynecologic cancer. The Division is led by Andrew Berchuck, MD, an internationally recognized clinician-scientist who leads the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. The Consortium has identified a few dozen genetic variants that increase ovarian cancer risk.
Division members and collaborators include nationally-recognized experts in cancer prevention and diagnostics, genomics and epigenomics of gynecologic malignancies, including Susan K. Murphy, PhD, Division Chief of the Reproductive sciences.
Research in the tumor micro-environment, cancer-related hormone signaling pathways and novel drug discovery, health services, and clinical trials of gynecologic cancers and pre-cancers, is conducted by the Gynecologic Oncology research team.
Publications
Use and outcomes of neoadjuvant chemotherapy for metastatic uterine cancer.
Wright JD, Huang Y, Melamed A, Albright BB, Hillyer GC, Previs R, Hershman MSDL.Gynecol Oncol. 2021 Sep;162(3):599-605. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2021.06.016. Epub 2021 Jun 20.PMID: 34158181
Optimizing ethyl cellulose-ethanol delivery towards enabling ablation of cervical dysplasia.
Mueller JL, Morhard R, DeSoto M, Chelales E, Yang J, Nief C, Crouch B, Everitt J, Previs R, Katz D, Ramanujam N.Sci Rep. 2021 Aug 19;11(1):16869. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-96223-9.PMID: 34413378
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy for advanced stage endometrial cancer: A systematic review.
Huang AB, Wu J, Chen L, Albright BB, Previs RA, Moss HA, Davidson BA, Havrilesky LJ, Melamed A, Wright JD.Gynecol Oncol Rep. 2021 Nov 6;38:100887. doi: 10.1016/j.gore.2021.100887. eCollection 2021 Nov.PMID: 34820496
Universal screening for Lynch syndrome in uterine cancer patients: A quality improvement initiative.
Spinosa D, Acosta T, Wong J, Kurtovic K, Mewshaw J, Collins S, Kauff N, Havrilesky LJ, Strickland KC, Previs RA.Gynecol Oncol. 2021 Jan;160(1):169-174. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2020.10.016. Epub 2020 Oct 21.PMID: 33393478
Albright BB, Monuszko KA, Kaplan SJ, Davidson BA, Moss HA, Huang AB, Melamed A, Wright JD, Havrilesky LJ, Previs RA.Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2021 Sep;225(3):237.e1-237.e24. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.04.254. Epub 2021 May 4.PMID: 33957111
Puechl AM, Spinosa D, Berchuck A, Secord AA, Drury KE, Broadwater G, Wong J, Whitaker R, Devos N, Corcoran DL, Strickland KC, Previs RA.Cancers (Basel). 2021 Jun 7;13(11):2847. doi: 10.3390/cancers13112847.PMID: 34200374
Watson CH, Broadwater G, Wong J, Spinosa D, de Oca MKM, Datto M, Green M, Hubbard C, McKinney M, McCall SJ, Havrilesky LJ, Strickler JH, Berchuck A, Strickland KC, Previs RA.Target Oncol. 2021 Jan;16(1):109-118. doi: 10.1007/s11523-020-00785-z. Epub 2021 Jan 5.PMID: 33400095
Meljen VT, Mittenzwei R, Wong J, Puechl A, Whitaker R, Broadwater G, Hall AH, Bean SM, Bentley RC, Elvin JA, Berchuck A, Previs RA, Strickland KC.Int J Gynecol Pathol. 2021 Nov 1;40(6):587-596. doi: 10.1097/PGP.0000000000000747.PMID: 33720082
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