Emily Avitan-Hersh, MD, PhD - Israel Cancer Research Fund

Scientist Spotlight

Director of Dermatology, co-head of the Skin Cancer Surveillance Program, Primary Investigator of the Skin Cancer Research Lab at the Clinical Research Institute
Rambam Health Care Campus
Current Grant: ICRF Project Grant, Uncovering the role of CXCR7 in cutaneous SCC

Who is Emily Avitan-Hersh, MD, PhD?

Dr. Emily Avitan-Hersh is a leading voice and expert in skin cancer who is grateful to ICRF for awarding her with her first substantial cancer research grant. She is the head of Dermatology at Rambam Health Care Campus and established and runs the Skin Cancer Research Lab at the Clinical Research Institute there. She earned her MD from the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and completed her residency in dermatology at Rambam. Dr. Avitan-Hersh is also a senior lecturer at the Technion and is the treasurer of the Israeli Society of Dermatology and Venerology.

ICRF-Funded Researcher Emily Avitan-Hersh, MD, PhD.

While pursuing her PhD she worked with renowned researcher Zeev Ronai, PhD, and Amir Orian, MD, PhD, at the University of California San Diego and learned that melanoma is a competitive field with extensive resources already dedicated to it. Dr. Avitan-Hersh, eager to take on greater challenges, decided to study squamous cell carcinoma, which is not researched as widely and needs more attention because it is very common. The opportunity to make a larger impact and further advance this underserved area in skin cancer is what drove her decision, and she is confident it was the right way to go.

When not at work, Dr. Avitan-Hersh spends time with her husband, a pediatrician focused on infectious diseases, and her two daughters. She also enjoys reading, cooking, and baking.

Dr. Emily Avitan-Hersh with her family.

Research Overview

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the second most prevalent form of skin cancer after basal cell carcinoma, and its incidence is on the rise. The prognosis for patients with advanced SCC is often poor, and there is a need for more effective treatments. Dr. Avitan-Hersh and team discovered that the chemokine receptor CXCR7 plays a significant role in SCC, affecting tumor growth and the immune response. Chemokines are small molecules that help cells communicate. Using cell cultures, mouse models, and patient samples, Dr. Avitan-Hersh is exploring how CXCR7 works and impacts SCC development and the effectiveness of new treatments. By combining lab research with patient data, she aims to better understand how CXCR7 functions in skin cancer and how it affects the response to immunotherapy.

Dr. Emily Avitan-Hersh with her lab team at The Clinical Research Institute at Rambam Health Care Campus.

Key Takeaways

For Dr. Avitan-Hersh, the most rewarding aspect of her work lies in the translation of her research findings to real-world applications. It excites her to study patient samples and create squamous cell lines from patient tumors, enabling her to see results in applicable examples, thus validating her research. She mentions that in Israel, this type of collaboration happens often between researchers and physicians, allowing for more effective outcomes.

Reflections

“I’m grateful to ICRF for allowing me to fulfill my dreams and do better research. Before ICRF I had one student in my lab at a time, and now I have four. Thank you for believing in me. ICRF is giving me the chance to get to where I want to go. For that I am incredibly grateful.” Dr. Avitan-Hersh also believes in the importance of mentoring. She is the graduate student academic advisor at Rambam Research Institute CRIR. Dr. Avitan-Hersh takes pride in nurturing the next generation of physicians and scientists and believes not only in transferring knowledge, but also in instilling a certain way of thinking, with an emphasis on dedication, compassion, responsibility, critical thinking, and enthusiasm.

Why Israel

“When it comes to research in Israel – we do so much with so little. We try to innovate from scratch. We find different protocols and try different ways. The creativity is one advantage, and the collaboration between the basic scientists and the physicians doing clinical research is another.” Dr. Avitan-Hersh also references the challenges she and her team face living in Northern Israel. Some students are stressed by the threats of missiles and are afraid and anxious about the unknown. Despite the difficulties, she also expresses gratitude for the diversity and unity among her colleagues, who are Jewish, Arab, Christian, and Druze.

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