Jing Chen, PhD, currently the Janet Davison Rowley Professor of Medicine, has been named as the Janet D. Rowley Distinguished Service Professor in Cancer Research. Dr. Chen joined the Department of Medicine in 2020, after serving as professor and R. Randall Rollins Chair in Oncology at the Emory University School of Medicine and leading the Cell and Molecular Biology Research Program at the Winship Cancer Institute there. He is also currently the director of the Cancer Metabolomics Research Center.
Dr. Chen’s research aims to understand cancer metabolism by focusing on the relationships between metabolic and cell-signaling networks, with the goal of improving clinical outcomes. His innovative efforts in leukemia research have revealed links between mutant proteins, signaling and cell metabolism. He also explores the connections between diet and tumor-causing mutations by testing the effects of diet-derived substances on genetically distinct tumors.
His work has resulted in numerous high-impact publications, substantial funding, six patents, and honors and awards from the American Cancer Society and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, among other institutions. In addition to research, Chen is devoted to teaching and mentorship and in 2017 won the Winship Cancer Institute Research Mentorship Award.
as the first Janet Davison Rowley Professor in Cancer Research effective January 1, 2021. Dr. Chen, a visionary scientist and international leader in the area of cancer metabolism, joined the Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology/Oncology in August 2020 where he also serves as inaugural director of the newly established the Cancer Metabolic Research Center and director of Basic and Translational Research in the Section of Hematology/Oncology.
Dr. Chen received a PhD in biochemistry from Emory University and completed postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School. In 2004 he joined the faculty as an assistant professor in the Department of Hematology & Medical Oncology in the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University where remained until his recruitment to our Department. Prior to joining our faculty, he served as professor and the R. Randall Rollins Chair in Oncology at the Emory University School of Medicine, and led the Cell and Molecular Biology Research Program at the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University.
Dr. Chen is a leader in the signaling and cancer metabolism fields and has made major contributions to the leukemia field and to solid tumor biology resulting in a better understanding of cancer metabolism and improved clinical outcomes. He has uncovered novel insights into the links between signaling and metabolism, using innovative studies in cellular/organismal systems. This includes groundbreaking work linking the BRAF and IDH mutant oncoproteins to signaling and metabolism. His work on mutations in leukemia has helped to establish that alternative pathways and metabolic factors influence the leukemia pathogenesis and disease development, and thus provide new insights in development of novel anti-leukemia therapies. He also works to decipher mechanistic bases underlying the pathogenic links between diets and particular oncogenic mutations by exploring the pro- and anti-tumor effects of diet-derived substances on tumors with specific genetic backgrounds. Dr. Chen’s cutting edge translational investigations have the potential to translate impactful science from bench to bedside.
Dr. Chen has an extensive track record of accomplishment in both original publications and research funding. His scholarly work includes very impressive set of papers where his discoveries have been published in Cancer Cell, Molecular Cell, Cell Metabolism, Nature Cell Biology, and Cancer Discovery. His research has been consistently funded throughout his career. He is currently supported by 2 NIH R01 awards and owns 6 patents for his work.
Dr. Chen has received numerous honors and awards during his career including the American Cancer Society Research Basic Scholar Award (2008), the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Career Development Program Scholar Award (2010), the Winship 5K Scholar Award (2014-2019), the Distinguished Alumnus from the Graduate Division of Biological & Biomedical Sciences at Emory University (2016). Nationally, Dr. Chen is a standing member of NIH/NCI’s Tumor Cell Biology (TCB) Study Section and he has lectured extensively in the international and national arenas. As a mentor, Dr. Chen has an outstanding record of guiding young investigators to successful careers in cancer research. In 2017 he was recognized with the Winship Cancer Institute Research Mentorship Award.
Dr. Rowley devoted her life to science and was internationally renowned for her studies of chromosome abnormalities in human leukemia and lymphoma, which led to better therapies for previously untreatable cancers.