Komen Breast Cancer Forum

"The Evolving Landscape of Endocrine Therapies for Breast Cancer"

Donald P. McDonnell, Ph.D.

Glaxo-Wellcome Professor of MCB
Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology
Duke University School of Medicine

About Dr. Mc Donnell:

Dr. Donald McDonnell is the Glaxo-Wellcome Distinguished Professor of Molecular Cancer Biology at Duke University's School of Medicine. He also serves as Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Professor of Medicine, Professor of Cell Biology, Member of the Duke Cancer Institute. He earned his Ph.D. from Baylor College of Medicine in 1988.

Dr. McDonnell's research focuses on developing novel therapies for hormonally responsive cancers, particularly Breast cancer and prostate cancer: Estrogen receptor (ER) and androgen receptor (AR) biology and signaling, Discovery and development of targeted cancer therapeutics, Identification of biomarkers that predict treatment response, Triple-negative breast cancer, The relationship between obesity, dyslipidemia, and cancer risk, Using hormone signaling pathways to improve cancer immunotherapy outcomes. His laboratory has helped discover and advance several important endocrine therapies, including work related to selective estrogen receptor degraders (SERDs) and drugs such as elacestrant (FDA-approved for certain breast cancers) and lasofoxifene, which are being evaluated for metastatic breast cancer treatment. His group has also investigated new approaches for treating advanced prostate cancer and enhancing immune responses against tumors