More than $19 million dollars were awarded by CPRIT to UTSW recently, including a $4 million CPRIT Scholar Rising Star Award to recruit Tian Zhang, M.D., M.H.S., a medical oncologist and clinical researcher from the Duke Cancer Institute.
“Dr. Zhang is one of the first clinical researchers to receive a Rising Star Award,” said Dr. James Brugarolas, Director of the Kidney Cancer Program, “which speaks to her strong credentials.”
Dr. Zhang is the co-chair of the National Cancer Institute Renal Task Force and leads the largest investigator-initiated phase 3 clinical trial in kidney cancer, the PDIGREE trial. She earned her medical degree from the Health Sciences and Technology program at Harvard Medical School and her Masters of Health Sciences degree from Duke University School of Medicine, where she trained in Internal Medicine and Hematology-Oncology.
Specializing in genitourinary (GU) malignancies, Dr. Zhang’s research interests involve developing novel therapeutics and biomarkers. She has actively cultivated a dynamic clinical research program in GU oncology with special interests around kidney and bladder cancers.
Her funded CPRIT proposal focuses on three kidney cancer projects. As the principal investigator of the PDIGREE trial, she will perform biomarker studies with the ultimate goal to optimize patient treatment selection. Her second project repurposes a PCSK9 inhibitor to enhance tumor antigen presentation and promote an immune anti-tumor response. Finally, she will leverage a device she developed to capture circulating kidney cancer cells to study tumor evolution.
“The broad repertoire of approaches and projects speaks to Dr. Zhang’s ingenuity,” said Dr. Brugarolas.
Fascinated by the intersection of science and medicine, Dr. Zhang credits her pursuit of oncology to an early passion for biochemistry. However, she acknowledges the sustaining rewards from special connections with her patients.
“My patients are my inspiration and the source of research questions I strive to answer with clinical trials,” said Dr. Zhang. She is also passionate about mentoring the next generation of trainees and early career investigators, an area where she has also established a track record.
Dr. Zhang’s husband, Andrew Wang, M.D., also recently joined UTSW as Professor and Associate Vice Chair for Research in Radiation Oncology.
