Vanderbilt Brain Tumor Center
Our Research
Kathleen Egan, ScD
Dr. Kathleen Egan is a cancer epidemiologist with interests in basic cancer biology, genetic susceptibility and nutrition. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in 1979 from the University of Connecticut and Master’s in Public Health in 1984 from Boston University. Subsequently, she received a Doctorate of Science degree in 1996 from the Harvard School of Public Health. After a long tenure at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public, in 2002, she joined the faculty at Vanderbilt University where she and Dr. Reid Thompson laid the groundwork for a major epidemiological study of malignant tumors of the brain. Now based at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL, she and Dr. Thompson are leading an NIH-funded multi-institutional study based at centers throughout the southeastern United States that is investigating whether environmental exposures and genetic susceptibility contribute to the risk of developing common forms of brain tumors, including glioma and meningioma.
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Jonathan Xu, Ph.D.
Dr. Jonathan Xu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery. Dr. Xu’s research focuses on the identification of protein biomarkers to assist with diagnosis and treatment of gliomas, which are the most common primary brain tumors. High-grade gliomas are highly infiltrative and often recur despite aggressive resection of the primary tumor mass with adjunct radio- and chemotherapy. Identification of plasma protein biomarkers for glioma will provide a non-invasive method for monitoring progression and recurrence of the disease. Dr. Xu’s laboratory also works on the development of intracranial microdialysis as a drug delivery and biomarker collection technique. The goal of this approach is to deliver anti-cancer drugs directly to the brain, bypassing the blood-brain barrier and minimizing systemic toxicity associated with conventional chemotherapy strategies. Drug efficacy and toxicity biomarkers can be collected simultaneously using microdialysis to guide choices of drug and dosage. Overall, Dr. Xu’s laboratory aims to conduct translational research to improve the outcomes of brain cancer patients.
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Michael Kane Cooper, M.D.
Michael Kane Cooper, M.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology. He completed his M.D. degree from the University of Alabama School of Medicine, Birmingham and residency in Neurology at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD. In addition, he completed a Howard Hughes Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for Physicians with Philip A. Beachy, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
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Allen Redmond, RN, BSN, CCRP
Allen Redmond joined the Department of Neurosurgery at Vanderbilt in January 2010 as the Clinical Research Coordinator for the Vanderbilt Brain Tumor Center. Allen received his Bachelor of Science in nursing from the University of Memphis Lowenberg School of Nursing. He has spent the past decade working as Clinical Research Coordinator for the Memphis Regional Brain Tumor Center in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Tennessee Memphis and Methodist University Hospital Neuroscience Center. In partnership with Center Director, Dr. Allen Sills, he was responsible for coordinating and overseeing all aspects of clinical neurosurgical research in the fields of neuro-oncology and neurovascular surgery. Through this work, he has been involved in all aspects of clinical trial design and implementation and also facilitated the bi-weekly clinical neuro-oncology tumor board. He has served as national coordinator and data manager for several multi-institutional cooperative clinical trials for brain tumors. He has also been involved in preparation and planning for a variety of neuro-oncology educational events and worked actively in fund raising efforts for brain tumor research. Allen has a keen interest in neuro-oncology clinical trials and in multidisciplinary treatment planning for brain tumor patients.
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Beth Braswell, RN, CCRP
Beth Braswell has been employed at Vanderbilt University Medical Center for 5 years as a research nurse. Since mid 2007, she has been in the Department of Neurological Surgery. Beth is the research coordinator for the Southeastern Regional Study of Adult Brain Tumors at Vanderbilt. This is a 5 year NIH funded epidemiology study focusing on glioma tumors. In assisting Dr. Thompson with his other research studies, her duties include all aspects of research trials; from IRB to patient enrollment and follow-up, sponsored and PI-initiated studies, including both interventional and non-interventional studies. These research activities include the Molecular Tissue Repository and the clinical database for the repository. Ms. Braswell obtained her Associates in Nursing from Columbia State Community College in Columbia, TN. Currently she is a Certified Clinical Research Professional as a member of the Society of Clinical Research Associates.
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Larry Pierce, M.S.
Larry Pierce has been working in cancer research for eight years. He has been with the Department of Neurological Surgery since September 2005, and has been manager of the Neurosurgical Oncology Laboratory since June 2008. His primary research interest is the development of relevant translational methods for detecting biomarkers of aberrant gene regulation in patients with malignant brain tumors. Prior to coming to the department, Larry spent two years studying effects of inherited and spontaneous mutations of mitochondrial and genomic DNA on incidence and survivability of breast cancer in large populations. He also spent nearly two years managing a high-volume sample processing facility supporting a major ongoing NIH-funded public health/cancer population study. Larry obtained his Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology at Phillips University, Enid, Oklahoma (1997) He obtained his Master of Science Degree in Biology from Vanderbilt University (2001), where he studied effector neuro-active peptides mediating autonomic behavior cascades/pathways in insects.
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