TOSHIAKI IWASE , MD , PHD

Investigator-Initiated Early Phase Clinical Trial Development and Regulatory Director Interim Medical Director , Clinical Trials Office Assistant Professor ( Assistant Researcher ), Translational and Clinical Research Program Dr . Iwase completed his MD at Showa University in Tokyo , his PhD at Chiba Graduate School of Medicine in Japan , and his postdoctoral fellowship at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center . He is currently the Investigator-Initiated Early Phase Clinical Trial Development and Regulatory Director of the Clinical Trials Office . Dr . Iwase ’ s research focuses on the development of cutting-edge cancer treatments and the identification of novel predictive biomarkers through the execution of early-phase investigator-initiated clinical trials .

JANGSOON ( JASON ) LEE , PHD

Associate Professor ( Associate Researcher ), Cancer Biology Program Dr . Lee is a graduate of Konyang University , South Korea with a PhD in Cancer Biology . His research encompasses two main objectives : pioneering innovative therapeutic approaches for various types of cancer and establishing preclinical research resources tailored to diverse populations including Asian Americans , Native Hawaiians , and Pacific Islanders . To alleviate the distress experienced by cancer patients , Dr . Lee ’ s vision is to craft patient-focused resources and robust preclinical research frameworks , thereby driving transformative translational and clinical research outcomes across the spectrum of cancer types .

ELIZABETH S . NAKASONE , MD , PHD

Junior Researcher , Cancer Biology Program Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology , Hawai ‘ i Pacific Health – Pali Momi Cancer Center Dr . Nakasone , a physician-scientist born and raised in Hawai ‘ i , earned her PhD from the Graduate School of Biological Sciences at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and her MD from the UH John A . Burns School of Medicine . A medical oncologist , her research is focused on defining the molecular mechanisms that drive cancer initiation , progression , and metastasis , and the development of therapeutic resistance . By understanding these processes , Dr . Nakasone ’ s objectives are to find novel , preclinically promising therapeutic strategies that are translatable into early phase clinical trials .

XIAOPING WANG , PHD

Associate Professor ( Associate Researcher ), Cancer Biology Program Dr . Wang received her PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Institute of Biophysics of Chinese Academy of Sciences . Her research focuses on establishing effective therapeutic interventions for patients with inflammatory breast cancer and triple-negative breast cancer . She is dedicated to determining the role of key signaling pathways in regulating tumorigenesis , inflammation , and the adjacent tumor microenvironment . Additionally , Dr . Wang is studying the molecular and immunological mechanism underlying the racial / ethnic disparity of inflammatory breast cancer in Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women .

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