Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD, the Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine in the Section of Hematology/Oncology, has been honored as a Giant in Cancer Care for Prevention/ Genetics by Onc Live. Dr. Olopade is the consummate physician-scientist with sustained and impactful translational research in genetics that spans more than two decades. She is a pioneer in cancer genetics whose body of work has focused on the molecular genetics of breast cancer progression. Her seminal contributions have provided an understanding of the root causes of aggressive breast cancer in young women, especially young women of African ancestry across the Diaspora. Her laboratory was the first to describe recurrent BRCA1 mutations in extended African American families with breast cancer, a study she extended to indigenous Nigerian women in West Africa. Her findings point to the need for women at risk of early-onset aggressive breast cancer across the African diaspora to receive counseling, genetic testing, and personalized screening at younger ages. Dr. Olopade has been recognized for her pioneering work combining medical oncology with cancer genetics in the United States and globally. She has received numerous honors and awards, including several honorary degrees and has an impressive publication record in peer-reviewed journals to her credit.
The Giants of Cancer Care® recognition program celebrates the achievements of leading researchers and educators whose discoveries have helped propel the field forward and established the building blocks for future advances. More information about this award may be found here.