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January 2026

The Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center (TCC) has launched a new artificial intelligence (AI) platform to expand and accelerate clinical trial access and enrollment across the Mount Sinai Health System. The platform, purpose-built for oncology, is powered by Triomics’ OncoLLM, a system of interoperable AI components engineered to integrate into clinical environments, automate data abstraction, and analyze information at patient level.

“By deploying an AI platform trained specifically for oncology, we can identify trial opportunities earlier, more consistently, and more equitably, allowing clinicians to focus on meaningful conversations with patients rather than manual chart review,” says Karyn Goodman, MD, MS, Associate Director of Clinical Research at TCC.

Laurie Margolies, MD, was named a Distinguished Reviewer for 2025 by the American Journal of Roentgenology, based on the number, timeliness, and quality of reviews completed during the year. Dr. Margolies is Vice Chair of Breast Imaging for the Mount Sinai Health System and Chief of Breast Imaging at the Dubin Breast Center. She also directs the Mobile Mammography Program.

Natasha Kyprianou, PhD, has been appointed for a two-year term as Chair of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Clinical and Translational Cancer Research Grants Committee. Dr. Kyprianou has served on numerous AACR committees including the Stand-Up-2-Cancer Review Committee, the AACR Election Committee, and the Margaret Foti Award Committee.

Karyn Goodman, MD, MS, was elected to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Board of Directors as the Designated Radiation Oncologist. Dr. Goodman has had a long history of ASCO involvement, with membership on multiple ASCO volunteer groups including the Gastrointestinal (GI) Guideline Advisory Group, the GI Cancers Symposium Steering Committee (serving as meeting Chair in 2018), the Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee, and the ASCO/AACR Methods in Clinical Cancer Research Workshop.

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Alison Snow, PhD, MSW, LCSW-R, OSW-C, was selected by the Board of Oncology Social Workers as the 2026 OSW‑C^® of the Year. The award recognizes an OSW‑C (certified oncology social worker) who has made significant contributions to oncology social work and who has supported and promoted oncology social work certification and service. Dr. Snow is Senior Director, Oncology Social Work and Cancer Supportive Services, and Adjunct Assistant Professor, Hematology and Medical Oncology and Environmental Medicine and Public Health. She is also Co-Director of the Center of Excellence for Cancer Support Services.

Nina Bhardwaj, MD, PhD, is co-chairing the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Immuno-Oncology Conference—Discovery and Innovation in Cancer Immunology: Revolutionizing Treatment through Immunotherapy—to be held February 18-21 in Los Angeles.

Scott Friedman, MD, is giving two invited lectures:

• Swiss National Liver Conference, January 9-11, in Grindelwald, Switzerland: “Leveraging Hepatic Stellate Cell Heterogeneity for Targeted Therapy”



• Keystone Conference—Fibrosis: Cross Organ Pathology and Pathways to Clinical Development—February 2-5, in Banff, Canada: “Genetics Linked with Fibrosis: Commonalities and Differences Across Organs”

Shambavi Richard, MD, will give an oral presentation at the 2026 Tandem Meetings: Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings of ASTCT (American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy) and CIBMTR (Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research), February 4-7, in Salt Lake City.

Dr. Richard’s presentation: “Safety and Efficacy of AZD0120, a BCMA/CD19 Dual-Targeting CAR T-cell Therapy, in relapsed/refractory Multiple Myeloma: Preliminary Results from the DURGA-1 phase 1b/2 Study” 

More News from the Tandem Meetings

James Ferrara, MD, Ward-Coleman Professor of Cancer Medicine, will receive the Pediatric Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Transplantation and Cellular Therapy.

Dr. Ferrara will also deliver the E. Donnall Thomas Lecture. This lecture recognizes an eminent physician or scientist who has contributed meritoriously to the advancement of knowledge in blood and marrow transplantation.

The manuscript Serial Clinical and Biomarker Monitoring During Graft-Versus-Host Disease Treatment Identifies Distinct Risk Strata Including an Ultra-Low Risk Group, authored by Nikolaos Katsivelos, MD, Nikolaos Spyrou, MD, and colleagues, was selected for the 2025 Ernest McCulloch and James Till Award for best basic science article in Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. The award, from the International Society for Experimental Hematology, recognizes early and mid-career scientists with outstanding scientific contributions in the field of hematology and stem cells.

Nadia Tsankova, MD, PhD, was awarded funding from Circle of Service Foundation for her project, “Modeling Glioblastoma Residual Disease at the Tumor Resection Margin.” Dr. Tsankova’s lab investigates the molecular drivers of proliferation and differentiation during normal neural development as well as in pathological conditions, such as gliomagenesis and reactive gliosis, in order to expose targets for drug therapy in gliomas and drug-resistant epilepsy.



Tsankova Laboratory

Developmental Fund Awards

The Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center (TCC) Developmental Fund Awards support innovative translational, epidemiological, and behavioral cancer research, with the goal of increasing collaborations between TCC’s Cancer Center Support Grant research programs. The 2025 awardees are:

• Alessandro Lagana, PhD, (Cancer Clinical Investigation) and Ernesto Guccione, PhD, (Cancer Mechanisms): “Dissecting the Impact of DIS3 Mutations in Multiple Myeloma”

• Igor Bado, PhD, (Cancer Mechanisms) and Yelena Ginzburg, MD, (Cancer Clinical Investigation): “Modulatory Function of Erythroferrone on Metastatic Potential and Anemia in Breast Cancer”

• Elvin Wagenblast, PhD, (Cancer Mechanisms) and Zeynep Gümüş, PhD, (Cancer Prevention and Control): “Decoding Lymphoid Clonal Hematopoiesis: Mechanisms and Clinical Risk”

Biostatstics Support for Grant Applications



The services of the Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center Biostatistics Shared Resource, under the leadership of Madhu Mazumdar, PhD, and Marcio Diniz, PhD, can significantly increase the likelihood of successful grant awards. Researchers are reminded to honor a four-week lead time for grant development. The first step in the process is to submit a request for services.

Questions can be directed to Erin Moshier, MSc, Managing Director.

“Combination Immunotherapy for the Treatment of Chemotherapy-refractory Metastatic MSS CR” (NCT07281716) is open to patient enrollment. Dan Feng, MD, PhD, is Principal Investigator.

This Phase 1b/2 open-label study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of combination immunotherapy with nadunolimab (anti-IL-1RAP) and toripalimab (anti-PD-1) in patients with chemotherapy-refractory metastatic microsatellite stable colorectal cancer. Phase 1b will assess dose-limiting toxicity. Phase 2 will evaluate objective response rate, including progression-free survival, overall survival, disease control rate, and duration of response. Exploratory analyses will investigate immunomodulatory effects through tumor and peripheral blood studies. Additional treatment arms/patient cohorts may be added. 

Do you have breaking news/high impact news that might be appropriate for media coverage? Contact Diego Ortiz Quintero in the Press Office.

See recent press releases at https://icahn.mssm.edu/research/tisch under Discover the Latest.

Sacha Gnjatic, PhD, and colleagues



A Single-Cell Atlas Characterizes Dysregulation of the Bone Marrow Immune Microenvironment Associated With Outcomes in Multiple Myeloma

Nature Cancer. 2026 Jan 9. PMID: 41514053

Dr. Gnjatic and colleagues have helped generate the largest single-cell immune cell atlas of the bone marrow in patients with multiple myeloma. Findings, based on the transcriptome profile of 1,397,272 single cells from the bone marrow of 337 newly diagnosed patients, reveal the presence of a proinflammatory immune senescence-associated secretory phenotype in rapidly progressing patients. Signaling analyses suggested active intercellular communication involving APRIL-BCMA, potentially promoting tumor growth and survival. The researchers demonstrate that integrating immune cell levels with genetic information can significantly improve patient stratification.

Press Release

Bushra Amreen, MPH; Corina Lesseur, PhD, MD; Maaike van Gerwen, MD, PhD, and colleagues

Preliminary Insights Into Methylation Patterns in Agent Orange Exposed Thyroid Cancers: A Pilot Study

Environmental Pollution. 2025 Dec 11. PMID: 41389864

This exploratory case-case study investigated DNA methylation patterns in 23 Agent Orange-exposed Veterans with thyroid cancer and 21 unexposed Veterans with thyroid cancer and found differentially methylated loci linked to Agent Orange-exposed thyroid cancers. These differentially methylated CpG sites mapped to both oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes. Enrichment analyses revealed hedgehog and folate signaling pathways. The reported DNA methylation changes may be a mechanism by which Agent Orange exposure contributes to thyroid cancer progression or less favorable thyroid cancer outcomes. 

Min Lu, MD, PhD; Md Babu Mia, PhD; Ronald Hoffman, MD, and colleagues

Microenvironmental Cell Interactions Are Essential for Sustaining Functionality of Myelofibrosis Malignant Stem Cells

Blood. 2025 Dec 15. PMID: 41397284

This study modeled in vivo cancer stem cell–tumor microenvironment interactions using myelofibrosis (MF) stem cells to elucidate their functional consequences. The tri-cultivation system supported a simple but reproducible platform for sustaining MF-initiating stem cells. Transcriptional profiling revealed that pro-inflammatory signaling is a dominant outcome of MF CD34⁺ cell–microenvironment interactions. The authors speculate that disrupting this self-reinforcing inflammatory circuit may represent a therapeutic strategy capable of modifying MF disease progression.

Anandita Mathur, MD; Laurie Margolies, MD, and colleagues

Performance of an Artificial Intelligence Support System on Screening Mammography Cases Proceeding to Stereotactic Biopsy

Cancers. 2025 Dec 4. PMID: 41375079

This retrospective study evaluated the standalone performance of an AI system, Transpara ScreenPoint Medical, in screening mammography cases proceeding to stereotactic biopsy using histopathological results as ground truth. Results showed that Transpara AI is a useful screening mammography triage tool. However, given the high false-positive rate, it is important for radiologists to exercise clinical expertise when interpreting AI results.

Melissa Mazor, PhD, MS, RN, and colleagues

Community-Based Participatory Research: A Lifeline to Achieve People-Centered Care

Frontiers in Public Health. 2025 Dec 15. PMID: 41473713

This paper presents an interprofessional and internationally relevant analysis of how community-based participatory research (CBPR) can support people-centered care (PCC) across clinical, public health, and policy domains. It focuses on foundational processes for establishing equitable academic-community partnerships and exemplar initiatives with minoritized populations. The authors outline a framework for applying CBPR to promote uptake of the World Health Organization’s integrated model for PCC, emphasizing its relevance with consideration to shifting policy and funding landscapes, and offer actionable recommendations for clinicians, researchers, community partners. 

Charles Powell, MD, MBA, and colleagues



Interstitial Lung Disease in Targeted Therapies: A Society of Gynecologic Oncology Clinical Practice Statement

Gynecologic Oncology. 2025 Nov. PMID: 41100914

This Society of Gynecologic Oncology clinical practice statement provides evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis, grading and management of interstitial lung disease (ILD) associated with gynecologic cancer therapies. Early detection and prompt intervention is required to mitigate pulmonary toxicity and prevent potentially catastrophic clinical events that may result from extended use of conventional cytotoxic agents, targeted therapies, and immunotherapy, which can cause ILD.

Graham Wehmeyer, MD, second-year Hematology/Medical Oncology fellow, was accepted into the 2026 cohort of the Lymphoma Research Foundation’s Lymphoma Scientific Research Mentoring Program (LSRMP). The program is designed for junior scientists interested in lymphoma and CLL research.

Dr. Wehmeyer’s research is focused on improving outcomes and limiting treatment toxicity in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, using a combination of real-world, retrospective studies and clinical trials investigating modern targeted agents. In the LSRMP program, Dr. Wehmeyer will continue to develop a clinical trial that will evaluate if SGLT2 inhibitors (used to treat diabetes and heart failure) reduce chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity in patients with lymphoma receiving anthracycline-based chemotherapy.

Dr. Wehmeyer’s mentor is Adam Kittai, MD.

The Cardio-Oncology Program at The Mount Sinai Hospital, under the directorship of Gagan Sahni, MD, has once again been awarded Gold Center of Excellence status. This is the highest designation of certification from the International Cardio-Oncology Society, an international platform dedicated to cardiovascular care of cancer patients.

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The TCC Community Outreach and Engagement team participated in an outreach/education program at Public School 38, East 103rd Street, on December 12, providing information about cancer screening and food and other supplies donated by TCC staff. On-site medical and mental health support services are provided at PS 38 via the Mount Sinai School Based Clinic.

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Tuesdays at noon, Davis Auditorium

January 20

Mehdi Damaghi, PhD

Department of Pathology, Stony Brook Cancer Center

Hosted by Jose Javier Bravo-Cordero, PhD

February 3

Balazs Halmos, MD

Associate Director, Clinical Science, Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center

Hosted by Fred R. Hirsch, MD, PhD

February 10

Anil Rustgi, MD

Herbert and Florence Irving Director of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Hosted by Ramon Parsons, MD, PhD

February 17

Rachel Schiff, PhD

Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine

Hosted by Hanna Irie, MD, PhD

Cancer Biology Retreat

Department of Oncological Sciences

Tuesday, April 7, 2026, 8 am–6:30 pm

The Bohemian National Hall, 321 East 73rd Street

Questions? Contact Evelyn Markov or Alana Coleman 

Myeloid Malignancy Workshop

Friday, March 6, 2026

New York Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Avenue

Course Directors:

• John Mascarenhas, MD
• Marina Kremyanskaya, MD, PhD
• Ruben A. Mesa, MD, FACP

More Information

  TCC Connections  is a monthly publication of the Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center

Ramon Parsons, MD, PhD, Director

Janet Aronson , Editor

Past issues of  TCC Connections  are available on the Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center website