Nikhil Wagle

Biography
Nikhil Wagle, MD, is an Assistant Professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, a medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and an Institute Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Dr. Wagle leads a translational research program in cancer genomics and cancer precision medicine, with a particular focus on metastatic breast cancer. The major goals of his work are to better understand the biology of cancer and to develop new ways to overcome or prevent drug resistance in patients with advanced cancer. Ultimately, his research aims to develop new therapeutic strategies and to identify characteristics of tumors that might improve clinical decision-making for patients. He has been a pioneer in the development and use of next-generation sequencing for cancer precision medicine, and has made major contributions to the understanding of mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapies in multiple cancer types. Over the past several years, he has focused on understanding the genomics of metastatic breast cancer, particularly through identifying and characterizing multiple clinical mechanisms of resistance to endocrine therapies, CDK4/6 inhibitors, and other therapies in ER+ metastatic breast cancer. Dr. Wagle also is the president and director of Count Me In (JoinCountMeIn.org), a non-profit organization and research initiative aimed at making it possible for cancer patients anywhere in the United States and Canada to be partners in cancer research. The program directly engages patients with cancer and seeks to empower them to accelerate cancer research through sharing their samples, clinical information, and experiences. The project’s outreach program, developed in collaboration with advocacy organizations and patients, serves to connect thousands of patients regardless of where they live. Wagle received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School and completed his residency training in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where he also served as chief medical resident; he completed his fellowship training in hematology/oncology in the Dana-Farber/Partners program. He conducted his postdoctoral studies in the lab of Levi Garraway at the Broad Institute and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.