Oudin receives early career investigator award

Madeleine Oudin, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, received a METAvivor Early Career Investigator Award from the METAvivor Metastatic Breast Cancer Foundation. Grants awarded by this foundation fund research that specifically addresses the mechanistic understanding, diagnosis, and/or treatment of metastatic breast cancer.

Oudin will use the funds to investigate how obesity-driven changes in the tumor microenvironment promote metastatic outgrowth and chemoresistance in metastatic triple negative breast cancer. Noting that 70% of US adults are overweight or obese, with the highest prevalence amongst socioeconomically disadvantaged groups, her research will help identify mechanisms by which secondary lung and liver metastases grow in obese patients and shed light on new strategies for treating these metastases.

The Oudin Lab at Tufts investigates cancer metastasis and explores the ways in which cancer becomes resistant to drugs designed to prevent spreading. The lab’s interdisciplinary approach to studying cancer progression incorporates cell biology, translational research, and bioengineering with innovative technologies such as intravital imaging, 3D CRIPSR screens, microfluidics, and implantable devices.

Established in 2009, the METAvivor Research Program has a singular goal of funding research to end death from metastatic breast cancer (MBC). The foundation has since awarded $12.4 million in research across 100 grants. Learn more about the grants at https://www.metavivor.org/research/grants-awarded.