A Look at Therapy Toxicities & Biology in Head & Neck Cancers
Source: journals.lww.com Author: Valerie Neff Newitt A measure of intrigue and discovery pertaining to head and neck cancer, spiked with compassion for patients struggling against treatment toxicities, helps quench the intellectual thirst of Yvonne Mowery, MD, PhD, Butler Harris Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C. Splitting time between the clinic and laboratory, Mowery is actively engaged in patient care as well as preclinical, translational, and clinical research. “I hope to get a better understanding of the biology of head and neck cancer and determine pathways that we can target to reduce metastatic spread of the disease and improve responsiveness to available treatments,” she told Oncology Times. Long before reaching her current status as an award-winning investigator, Mowery grew up in Richmond, Va., in the midst of a “completely non-scientific” family. “I was an oddball,” she joked, while recalling her parents' patience with her backyard composting experiments that became so foul-smelling that the health department was contacted. As a kid, her idea of a great present was an encyclopedia of science, and the thing that caught her eye at the toy store was a junior chemistry set. Science was clearly her path when she headed to the University of Virginia. In her sophomore year, Mowery began working in a genetics lab. That's where the lure of fruit flies took hold. “I looked at the development of their reproductive system and found that very interesting,” she recalled. Nearing the completion of her undergraduate education, Mowery debated [...]