Meet the Team

In addition to directing my research laboratory, I have fruitful collaborations with the Getz group at the Broad Institute and the Bernstein Lab at MGH, which aim to understand the biological basis of intra-tumor heterogeneity. My laboratory research interests synergize with my interests in clinical trials, my roles as a head and neck surgeon and Head and Neck Disease Group Leader at the OSUCCC – James, and my work with many groups devoted to improving clinical care of head and neck cancer patients.

I worked with Dr. Rocco to develop a measure of genetic differences among cancer cells in a tumor and to show its relation to outcome in head and neck cancer. Researchers studying other types of cancer are now adopting this approach. Since moving to Ohio State, I have been extending this work to evaluate the relation of intra-tumor heterogeneity to head and neck cancer outcomes following specific types of therapy, with a long-term goal of helping to personalize therapy choices. I am working with colleagues at the Broad Institute to understand the early processes of tumor evolution that lead to intra-tumor heterogeneity and provides senior-level supervision for Rocco Lab students and staff.

I am studying how loss of tumor suppressor functions leads to tumor development and heterogeneity. To model the initiating stages of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), I use CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing to induce concurrent mutations in the TP53 and CDKN2A genes of primary keratinocytes. These include knockouts and mutations of the p53 protein (which promote heterogeneity) and individual or combined knockouts of the p14 and p16 protein products of the CDKN2A gene. This panel of genetically modified keratinocytes lines will help to dissect out the roles of CDKN2A and TP53 alterations in initiation and development of SCC and to identify actionable targets for developing novel treatments.

I am helping to identify the best ways to process, sort and collect cancer cells from patient tumors for the Head and Neck Tumor Heterogeneity (HNTH) project. I use the HNTH Flow Cytometer to analyze, characterize and sort different types of cells from patient tumors and patient-derived tumor xenografts (PDX). I also provide highly experienced technical support to other laboratory projects, most recently on developing ways to identify specific strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) in cells from head and neck tumors.

I am a member of the Head and Neck Tumor Heterogeneity (HNTH) group. I am helping to establish the best ways to use living cells from patients’ tumors for studies of intra-tumor heterogeneity. I process tumors for live tissue/cell harvest to analyze complex cancer models such as tumorsphere formation from single cells, responses to drug treatments and associations of cellular behaviors with patient clinical characteristics.

I am a member of the Head and Neck Tumor Heterogeneity (HNTH) group in the laboratory. I procure living tumor and normal tissues, and then processe them in the laboratory in ways designed to keep the cells alive for study: in standard two-dimensional tissue culture, as three-dimensional organoids and tumorspheres, and as tumors growing in mice. I also help characterize these tissues and cells, like preparing fixed tissue for pathology and histology.

I provide skilled technical support for molecular biology studies in the laboratory. I am developing a system to use adenovirus to deliver CRISPR technology for editing genes in cells. The goal is to combine the ease of use and specificity of CRISPR with the advantages of adenoviruses, which unlike retroviruses do not directly alter the genome themselves. I particularly want to use these tools to help elucidate cellular pathways associated with the p16 and p14 products of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (CDKN2A) gene and the tumor suppressor p53.

I bring my background in studying targeted anticancer agents in head and neck cancer to the Rocco Lab. I am developing an animal model of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) in immune-competent mice that will allow study of the role of the immune system in HNSCC progression and how immunotherapy can contribute to HNSCC treatment. I am also characterizing the expression of estrogen receptor expression in HNSCC to see if our recent discoveries about estrogen receptors in HNSCC can lead to better, novel therapies.

I study tumor initiating cells (TIC), whose functional differences from other cancer cells in a tumor provide a mechanism of recurrence in HNSCC. I am developing both marker-dependent and functional assays to identify TIC and is investigating drugs that modulate TIC.

I provide scientific and technical oversight of the Rocco Lab and other groups in the Head and Neck Cancer Research Program at Ohio State while I'm engaged in several research projects. I am in charge of the Head and Neck Tumor Heterogeneity (HNTH) group in the Rocco Lab, helping develop the original concept of the HNTH initiative and then taking it through the design and equipping of research space and the hiring and supervision of staff.

I provide budgetary and administrative support to the Rocco Lab and other laboratories in the Head and Neck Cancer Research Program of the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. I maintain fiscal accountability, ensuring that resources are efficiently used to reach program goals, and help plan future initiatives. I also serve as liaison with other departments, programs and offices at Ohio State and assist the department chair, division director and COO with faculty and staff recruitment, travel and hiring.