The Women in Science Lecture Series, hosted by Sanford Burnham Prebys, highlights the groundbreaking work and unique perspectives of women leaders in the biomedical sciences, while fostering mentorship and collaboration across the Torrey Pines Mesa.
Lecture and Moderated Fireside Chat 11:30 am – 12:30 pm
Networking Reception 12:30 – 1:30 pm
Join us for our inaugural event, featuring Susan Tousi, MBA, CEO at DELFI Diagnostics and Brooke Emerling, PhD, Associate Professor and Director of the Cancer Metabolism & Microenvironment Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys.
Susan has extensive R&D and business leadership experience across the life sciences and technology industries. Adept at shaping and leading global R&D, commercial, sales, and operational strategies, she most recently held over a decade-long SVP tenure at Illumina, Inc. She served as Chief Commercial Officer for three years until joining DELFI in January 2024. Susan spearheaded the development and launch of several of Illumina’s most impactful and well-recognized products and is adept at driving value and commercial success for organizations. Earlier at Illumina, she led the product development organization as Chief Product Officer and drove the acquisitions of three companies to scale up Illumina’s software solutions. She also brings experience from leadership roles at Eastman Kodak, as Corporate Vice President and General Manager of the Consumer Inkjet Business; as Vice President, Phogenix Imaging LLC; and as an R&D leader at Hewlett-Packard. Susan is a Forbes ‘50 Over 50 Entrepreneurs’ honoree, and was named one of the 50 Top Diverse Leaders by the California Diversity Council. She is a member of the National Academy of Engineers and the International Women’s Forum, a global organization of preeminent women of significant and diverse achievement. Susan serves as an independent board director of BICO Group, a public company in Sweden, and as a scientific advisor to Vizgen, a private company driving innovation in the field of spatial transcriptomics. Susan holds an MBA from UCLA and an Honors BS in Engineering Science from Pennsylvania State University.
Seminar
Focus On: Cellular Stress
Elda Grabocka, PhD
DateJun 2, 2025
Time12:00-1:00PM PT
LocationFishman Auditorium
10901 N. Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037Get Directions
We’re bringing together leaders in cancer research.
Speaker
Elda Grabocka, PhD Associate Professor Departments of Pharmacology, Physiology and Cancer Biology & Surgery Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health
“The Dynamic Life of Stress Granules: Linking Cell Cycle, Metabolism, and Pancreatic Cancer”
This seminar will cover our research into stress adaptation in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC). We start with findings on molecular drivers of stress granule (SG) formation and their role in PDAC tumor development. Our investigation then revealed that SG composition and function are not static, but dynamically shaped by cell state, particularly the cell cycle. We’ll present novel findings on this cell-cycle-dependent heterogeneity and its consequences for tumor cell fate. We also touch on how systemic factors, like those in the metabolic syndrome-tumor axis, affect SG biology and cellular stress in PDAC.Finally, we integrate these multi-level insights—from molecular SG mechanics to cell-state modulation and systemic impacts—to illustrate their convergence in pancreatic tumorigenesis. We aim to highlight emerging therapeutic opportunities, such as phase-specific SG targeting, and foster discussion on new anti-PDAC strategies based on our findings.
Seminar
Lost in (multi-omic) translation: Identification of Microbial Immunometabolic Pathways in Patients with Lung Cancer
Frank Weinberg, MD, PhD
DateSep 11, 2024
Time12:00-1:00PM PT
LocationFishman Auditorium 10901 N. Torrey Pines Road La Jolla, CA 92037 Get Directions
We’re bringing together leaders in cancer research.
Speaker
Jian Jin, PhD Mount Sinai Endowed Professor in Therapeutics Discovery Director, Mount Sinai Center for Therapeutics Discovery Professor, Departments of Pharmacological Sciences, Oncological Sciences and Neuroscience Co-Leader, Cancer Clinical Investigation Program, Tisch Cancer Institute Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
“Discovery of Novel Degraders and Development of New Approaches to Target Undruggable Proteins”
Seminar
Focus On: Cancer Lymphatics
Amanda Lund, PhD
DateJun 9, 2025
Time12:00-1:00PM PT
LocationFishman Auditorium
10901 N. Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037Get Directions
We’re bringing together leaders in cancer research.
Speaker
Amanda Lund, PhD Associate Professor, Ronald O. Perelman Department of Dermatology Associate Professor, Department of Pathology NYU Langone Cancer Center
“The lymphatic system: toggling between immune surveillance and metastasis”
Lymphatic vessels play a crucial role in activating anti-tumor immune surveillance but also contribute to metastasis and thereby systemic tumor progression. Here we will discuss a metabolic switch that defines distinct lymphatic phenotypes that toggle between these two functions and regulate regional melanoma progression.
Seminar
Focus On: Cancer Chemical Biology
Nathanael Gray, PhD
DateFeb 24, 2025
Time12:00-1:00PM PT
LocationFishman Auditorium
10901 N. Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037Get Directions
We’re bringing together leaders in cancer research.
Speaker
David E. Fisher, MD, PhD Edward Wigglesworth Distinguished Professor of Dermatology Lancer Professor of Dermatology Harvard Medical School
Chair, Head of the Department of Dermatology Pediatrician, Pediatrics Physician, Medicine-Hematology/Oncology Chair, Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) Massachusetts General Hospital
“Skin signaling, pigmentation, and UV radiation: melanoma risk and therapeutic strategies”
Seminar
Focus On: Cancer Metabolism
Jason Cantor, Ph.D.
DateOct 28, 2024
Time12:00-1:00PM PT
LocationFishman Auditorium
10901 N. Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037Get Directions
