Our Lab Team

Our laboratory is home to investigators, post-docs, PhD students, medical students, oncology fellows, staff, and other collaborators from multi-disciplinary fields who are driven to study how the intersection of cancer genomics and immunotherapy can advance precision oncology.

Current Members

Noushin Niknafs, PhD

Noushin Niknafs, PhD

Research Associate, Oncology Upper Aerodigestive Cancer, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BS, Electrical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
  • MS, Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
  • PhD, Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

Bio: Noushin is a bioinformatics scientist with a background in computational molecular medicine. She focuses on development and application of bioinformatics and statistical methodologies in the field of cancer genomics investigating questions related to cancer early detection, tumor evolution, treatment response prediction and monitoring.

 

Gavin Pereira, BS

Gavin Pereira, BS

Laboratory and Biorepository Manager, SKCCC Molecular Oncology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BS, Cell and Molecular Biology, Towson University, Towson, Maryland

Bio: Gavin is interested in early detection of cancer using liquid biopsy approaches in addition to exploring precision medicine in oncology.

Nisha Rao, BA

Nisha Rao, BA

Research Technologist, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BA, Psychology, Carleton College, Northfield, MN
Shreshtha Jolly, MS

Shreshtha Jolly, MS

Research Technologist, Dr. Anagnostou’s lab, Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • MHS, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
  • BS, Double Major in Biology and Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Bio: Shreshtha aspires to become a physician-scientist (MD, PhD) specializing in oncology. Her research interests involve unraveling the causes of pathological disorders and developing effective treatment approaches, particularly within the field of oncology.

Mimi Najjar, MD

Mimi Najjar, MD

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • MD, University of Balamand, Lebanon
  • BS, Chemical Engineering, University of Balamand, Lebanon

Bio: Mimi is interested in studying the genetic factors that influence responses to immunotherapy through integrative genomic exploration. She is particularly interested in translating scientific research into innovative clinical applications, contributing to improved patient care, and promoting personalized medicine.

Lavanya Sivapalan, Ph.D.

Lavanya Sivapalan, Ph.D.

Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • Ph.D. Cancer Biology and Molecular Genetics, Barts and the London School of Medicine, Queen Mary University of London

Previous Institutions:

  • Barts and the London School of Medicine, Queen Mary University of London

Bio: Lavanya is interested in leveraging minimally invasive liquid biopsies to gain real-time insights into tumor burden dynamics and the evolving molecular landscape of cancers during the selective pressure of immunotherapy.

Katerina Karaindrou, MD candidate

Katerina Karaindrou, MD candidate

MD candidate 2027, Member of JH Molecular Tumor Board

Education:

  • MD candidate at National Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Previous Institutions:

  • Johns Hopkins University KSAS, Baltimore MD

Research Interests: genotype-matched therapeutic routes, translational genomics technologies, liquid biopsies and ctDNA analyses, precision oncology and patient education initiatives.

Jaime Wehr, MS

Jaime Wehr, MS

Data Analyst, Molecular Tumor Board, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BS, Loyola University Maryland, Baltimore, MD
  • MS, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, Pittsburgh, PA

Bio: Jaime is interested in the genetic basis for cancer and how this information can be better used in the treatment, prognosis, and prevention of cancer. She is also interested in new developments in technology and how these can be leveraged in new and exciting ways in scientific research.

Blair Landon, BS

Blair Landon, BS

Graduate Student, Ph.D. Candidate of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Education

  • BS, Chemical Engineering, UMBC, Baltimore, MD

Bio: Blair is interested in investigating the interplay between solid tumors and the immune system and how this is related to tumor evolution and anti-tumor immune response.

Archana Balan, MSE

Archana Balan, MSE

Graduate Student, PhD student in Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • MSE, Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

Previous Institutions:

  • Indian Institute of Sciences, Bengaluru, India.

Bio: My research interests include developing computational methods and bioinformatics pipelines for cancer genomics. I am particularly interested in leveraging multi-omics data to study mechanisms of resistance in immunotherapy.

Jinny Huang, BS

Jinny Huang, BS

PhD student in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BS, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

Previous Institutions:

  • Department of Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Bio: Jinny is broadly interested in developing a tumor-informed, cell free (cfDNA) whole genome sequencing (WGS) multi-feature approach that integrates cfDNA WGS with information about differential fragmentomics and copy number alterations in a machine learning model to capture immunotherapy response and MRD in the metastatic as well as early-stage cancer settings.

Justin Huang, MS

Justin Huang, MS

Medical Student, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Class of 2025

Education:

  • MS, Bioengineering, Stanford University
  • BS, Computer Science, Johns Hopkins University

Bio: Justin is interested in applying computational methods and data analytic techniques to advancing cancer immunotherapies, with a special focus on investigating treatments that may be directly translated into clinical settings.

Kavya Velliangiri

Kavya Velliangiri

Undergraduate Student of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University

Bio: Kavya is interested by the cellular mechanisms of oncology, and hopes to further her understanding of cancer therapeutics and therapeutic strategies.

Johns Hopkins Molecular Tumor Board Fellows

Michael Conroy, MB BCh BAO

Michael Conroy, MB BCh BAO

Advanced fellow in thoracic oncology, Division of Upper Aerodigestive Malignancies, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • MB BCh BAO, University College Dublin, Ireland.
  • Oncology Fellowship, Royal College of Physicians in Ireland.

Bio: Michael is a clinical and research fellow with a focus on thoracic cancers. His current research interests include the use of liquid biopsy in the genomic profiling of lung cancer, the gut microbiome as a prognostic biomarker in non-small cell lung cancer and early phase clinical trials.

Laura Linville, MD

Laura Linville, MD

Medical Oncology Fellow, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore MD

Education:

  • BS, Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
  • MS, Physiology and Biophysics, Georgetown University Washington, DC
  • MD, Doctor of Medicine, George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Washington, DC

Previous Institutions:

  • George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Washington, DC
  • National Institutes of Health, Division of Cancer Epidemiology & Genetics, Rockville, MD

Bio: Laura is currently working in the genitourinary research group, focused on biomarkers development and early phase clinical trials. In particular, she is interested in exploring epigenetic and genomics targets in traditionally hormone-based malignancies.

Maria Fatteh, MD

Maria Fatteh, MD

Postdoctoral research fellow, Oncology Department, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education

  • BS, Biology, American University of Beirut

Bio: Maria is interested in precision oncology, patient-centered care and facilitating access to personalized medicine while understanding the intricacies of genotype-targeted therapies.

Mohamed Sherief, MD

Mohamed Sherief, MD

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery (M.B.B.Ch), Benha University – Faculty of Medicine, Egypt

Bio: Mohamed’s research is focused on precision oncology, with a particular emphasis on its application in brain cancer. At Johns Hopkins, he is working on developing a comprehensive database for all brain cancer patients, alongside expanding the precision medicine biobank. His work intersects with the Molecular Tumor Board, contributing to the strategic selection of targeted therapies in various cancer types. His efforts aim to advance targeted therapies for cancer treatment.

Amna Jamali, MBBS

Amna Jamali, MBBS

Postdoc Research Fellow, Oncology Center-Upper Aerodigestive Cancer, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • MBBS, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan

Bio: Amna is interested in understanding the relevant role of genomics in guiding diagnostic and therapeutic interventions that underlie cancer treatment, with a focus on response and resistance to immunotherapy.

BioInformatics

James Robert White, PhD

James Robert White, PhD

Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, and Biostatistics

Education:

  • PhD, Applied Mathematics and Scientific Computation, University of Maryland — College Park

Bio: James is focused on the development of novel computational methods to analyze multi-omics data at the intersection of cancer, immunology and the microbiome.

Christopher Cherry, PhD

Christopher Cherry, PhD

Bioinformatician, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Education:

  • BS, Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
  • PhD, Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

Previous Institutions:

  • James Clark School of Engineering, University of Maryland
  • Translational Tissue Engineering Center, Johns Hopkins University

Bio: Chris is interested in analysis of multiomic data with a focus on single cell and spatial data sets.

Alumni

  • Joseph Murray, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Oncology, Co-Director; Lung Cancer Precision Medicine Center of Excellence, Director; UAD Immunotherapy Database, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
  • Jenna Canzoniero, M.D., M.S., Assistant Professor of Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
  • Michael Hwang, M.D., Assistant Attending Physician, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
  • Susan Combs Scott, M.D., Assistant Professor of Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
  • Paola Ghanem, M.D., Internal Medicine Resident, Johns Hopkins Hospital
  • Zineb Belcaid, M.D., M.S., Pathology Resident, Erasmus MC
  • Xiaoshan (Melody) Shao, Ph.D., Computational Biologist, Adaptive Biotechnologies
  • Aryan Borole, MD Candidate, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
  • Alexandria Curry, MD Candidate, Howard University
  • Mara Lanis, PhD Candidate, Whiting School of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University
  • Lamia Rhymee, DO Candidate, Kansas City University
  • Neha Wali, MD/PhD Candidate, National Cancer Institute and University of Oxford
  • Samer Mathkour, PhD Candidate, MD Anderson
  • Kent Hardart, MD Candidate, University of Maryland
  • Marta Majcherska-Agrawal, PhD Candidate, University of Chicago
  • Lily Zandi, PhD Candidate, Boston University
  • Xiwen Cui, Undergraduate Student, Cornell University
  • Xavier Welch, Undergraduate Student, Morgan State University
  • Michaela Feldi, Undergraduate Student, Johns Hopkins University
  • Tomisin Adebari, Undergraduate Student, Morgan State University
  • Krassimira Trainor, Undergraduate Student, University of Chicago
  • Ellie Evangelopoulou, MD Candidate, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
  • Emily Nizialek, M.D., Ph.D., Medical Director, Baselga Cancer Research Scholar, Astra Zeneca
  • Selina Shiqing The, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
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