Karen Bussard, M.S., Ph.D.
- CRTA Post-doctoral Fellow
37 Convent Drive
Building 37, Room 1112
Bethesda, Maryland 20892
Education:
- Fairleigh Dickinson University , Madison , NJ B.S. 1999 - Biology, minor Chemistry
- The Pennsylvania State University , Hershey , PA M.S. 2002 - Biomedical Engineering
- The Pennsylvania State University , University Park , PA Ph.D. 2008 - Pathobiology
Biography:
Karen completed her Ph.D. in Pathobiology in August of 2008 and graduated in The Pennsyvlania State University's Fall Commencement Ceremony on December 20, 2008. Her Ph.D. thesis was entitled "The Role of Osteoblast-Derived Cytokines in Bone Metastatic Breast Cancer." Karen's Ph.D. work dealt with understanding the involvement of a defined set of cytokines produced by osteoblasts that were found to influence the bone micronevironment in tumorigenesis. These cytokines may be maintenance or survival factors for bone metastatic breast cancer cells.
After completing her Ph.D. at Penn State, Karen joined the laboratory of Dr. Gilbert Smith of the Mammary Biology and Tumorigenesis Laboratory, in the Center for Cancer Research, of the National Cancer Institute, at the National Institutes of Health. Karen is presently a Cancer Research Training Awardee and is a Post-doctoral Fellow. Karen's research in the Smith lab deals with understanding the role of stem cells in tumorigenesis.
