Olivia Sears, MD
Olivia Sears, MD, a resident in the Department of Surgery and member of the Tsung-Zhang-Ruff research group, has received a one-year, $150,000 award from the Focused Ultrasound (FUS) Foundation and the UVA FUS Center to support innovative research aimed at overcoming immunotherapy resistance in cancer.
The project, “Focused Ultrasound–Induced Neutrophil Reprogramming to Overcome Immunotherapy Resistance,” will investigate how FUS can reprogram neutrophils and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) to enhance immune checkpoint inhibitor response in triple-negative breast cancer and colorectal cancer.
Using complementary preclinical models and translational biomarker studies, the team will examine how mechanical tumor disruption reshapes the tumor microenvironment to boost CD8⁺ T-cell activation.
The Tsung-Zhang-Ruff research group explores the complex interplay between innate immunity, injury-induced inflammation, and the development of both primary and metastatic cancers.
Filed Under: Research