Aileen Fernandez (She/Her/Hers) Email & Phone Number

Experienced cancer biologist with a focus in cancer health disparities and biomarker discovery and development. Demonstrated history of working in academia. Postdoctoral experience in translational oncology - focus on identifying and developing biomarkers to better identify which patients with cancer will respond to targeted therapies, improving patient care. (Lung, Breast, Gastric Cancer). Duke Next Generation Leader, Burroughs Wellcome Postdoctoral Diversity Enrichment Program (PDEP) Fellow, and Fred Hutch Eddie Méndez awardee in 2022. Yale Center for Clinical Investigation Multidisciplinary Post-Doctoral Training Program fellow in 2021-2022.PhD in the Tumor Biology training program at Georgetown University (GU) in 2019. Thesis work focused on triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive breast cancer subtype that disproportionally affects African-American women and lacks targeted therapies. While at GU, co-founded the Women in Science and Education (WISE) group with colleagues, serving as the group’s strategist, secretary, and diversity liaison.Passionate about leveling accessibility in science and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Strong beliefs in improving science communication to better disseminate information from the scientists’ bench to society. Work frequently with patient advocates. As a postdoc, co-founded the Yale School of Medicine Black Postdoctoral Association and the Yale Postdoctoral Association's (YPA) Racial Justice Subcommittee, co-coordinated the YPA Professional Development committee in 2021, and was a member of the Department of Pathology's DICE committee for two years. Actively works on initiatives, including the Intersections Science Fellows Symposium, to highlights the needs of URM postdocs and how we can address them to increase retention in academia. As a PhD student, co-founded Women in Science and Education group. Skilled in Translational Science, Basic Sciences, Epidemiology, Biotechnology, Healthcare, Life Sciences, and Medicine. Research professional with a Doctor of Philosophy and Master of Science in Cancer Biology.