Research Areas

Basic and Translational Research

The surgical oncology research space is housed in the state-of-the-art Wolstein Research Building. We are funded through the NIH and American Cancer Society to study basic molecular mechanisms of cancer biology and develop new therapies to target cancer, based on these discoveries.

Through IRB approved protocols, we collect tissue and blood on our consenting patients and collaborate with world-class scientists to improve diagnostic testing and improve cancer therapies. These studies are providing insights into the immune response to cancer.

The Winter Lab studies basic, translational, and clinical aspects of pancreatic cancer with a principal goal to discover new and effective therapies. The lab seek to understand how pancreatic cancers develop resistance to standard chemotherapies.

Clinical Outcomes Research

Our surgical oncologists utilize institutional and national databases to study surgical and disease-related outcomes and health disparities. These studies include collaborations with other institutions and are an opportunity to teach and train students from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

Luke Rothermel, MD is an expert in melanoma and soft tissue sarcoma, and his work aims to improve outcomes in patients with these diseases. His work focuses on overcoming the mechanisms of resistance to immunotherapies, understanding trends in survival and treatment outcomes, and intervening on social and patient-level determinants of health that create barriers to patients achieving the best treatment outcomes.

Megan Miller, MD is a breast surgeon whose work focuses on improving outcomes in patients with breast cancer. Her work includes studies that use novel techniques to optimize surgical care and improve patient experience. Her research also focuses on understanding breast cancer heterogeneity to individualize treatment for each patient and advance the quality of multidisciplinary breast cancer care.

Jeff Hardacre, MD is a pancreatic surgeon. Along with Jordan Winter, MD, their work aims to understand the impact of chemotherapy and mechanisms of pancreatic cancer resistance to conventional treatment, trends and changes in survival outcomes over time, and the discovery of non-invasive detection methods of early pancreatic cancer like unintentional weight loss.