Lisa Coussens

Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California San Francisco (UCSF), USA

Lisa Coussens Picture Lisa Coussens is Professor of Pathology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Co-Director of the Mouse Pathology Core Facility at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her training included seven years at Genentech Inc in the 1980s, where she participated in the cloning and characterization of receptor tyrosine kinases; PhD training in biological chemistry at the University of California, Los Angeles, USA; and postdoctoral work in Douglas Hanahan's laboratory at UCSF.

Her research focuses on the role of inflammatory cells and leukocyte proteases as critical regulators of skin, lung and breast cancer development. By studying mouse models of cancer development, the Coussens lab is identifying crucial molecules that are involved in regulating tumour-associated inflammation, matrix remodelling and angiogenesis. Identification of these important regulatory molecules reveals drug targets that can be used to design novel therapeutic strategies for arresting cancer development in humans.

Lisa Coussens is recipient of numerous awards, including the V Foundation Scholar award (2000), the Malinckrodt Award for Medical Research (2000), the AACR Gertrude B Elion Cancer Research Award (2002), and the Era of Hope Scholar Award (2006).