FOCUS
Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States, and patients with the most common form, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), have only a 7 percent five-year survival rate. Samantha’s research focuses on characterizing the role of extracellular Plectin-1, a robust biomarker for PDAC, in extracellular and intracellular signaling in order to help develop novel diagnostic and treatment modalities for PDAC.
MORE ABOUT SAMANTHA
Samantha is a first-generation college student who received her bachelor of science in engineering degree from Duke University in 2015 and is currently a PhD student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia. With the help of HPRS, Samantha wants to bring together her research from the lab and a rare perspective from her community to influence health policy.
DISSERTATION GRANT AWARDEE — FALL 2021
A Novel Cancer-Specific Plectin Targeting Monoclonal Antibody Promotes an Antitumor Immune Response in PDAC Models
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE HPRS DISSERTATION AWARDS, CLICK HERE.
