Cynthia Ma Receives Susan G. Komen Leadership Grant

Cynthia X. Ma, MD, PhD, a renowned WashU Medicine physician-scientist at Siteman Cancer Center, has received a Leadership Grant from Susan G. Komen to advance breast cancer research focused on endocrine resistance, a major challenge in treatment for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer.

A medical oncologist, Ma treats patients with this and other types of breast cancer at Siteman Cancer Center, based at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine.

She will use the grant to study tumor samples collected from postmenopausal women with ER-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer who participated in a major phase III study called the ALTERNATIVE trial, which Ma leads. The tumor samples were collected at diagnosis and then again during surgery after the patients received endocrine therapy, also called hormone therapy. By comparing these samples, her team will investigate the genetic features present before treatment and the changes that occur during therapy that may cause tumors to become resistant. The goal is to better understand why some tumors stop responding to therapy and to identify patients who are at risk of treatment resistance. Ultimately, this knowledge could help guide more personalized treatments that improve patient outcomes and save lives.

Susan G. Komen announced the award June 23, part of $15.4 million total in research grants awarded to 35 leading U.S. researchers, including long-term, well-established researchers such as Ma who have made a profound impact in the field, as well as early-career investigators.

“The researchers receiving grants from Susan G. Komen are making lasting contributions to our understanding of breast cancer and bringing the innovation and technology that’s needed to this disease so that all patients can receive the best care possible and enjoy a high quality of life after a breast cancer diagnosis,” said Ann H. Partridge, MD, MPH, chief scientific adviser for Komen.