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    Barbara Burtness, MD

    Anthony N. Brady Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology)
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    Additional Titles

    Chief Translational Research Officer, Yale Cancer Center

    Chief, Head and Neck Cancers/Sarcoma

    Co-Leader, Developmental Therapeutics, Yale Cancer Center

    Associate Cancer Center Director for Translational Research, Yale Cancer Center

    About

    Titles

    Anthony N. Brady Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology)

    Chief Translational Research Officer, Yale Cancer Center; Chief, Head and Neck Cancers/Sarcoma; Co-Leader, Developmental Therapeutics, Yale Cancer Center; Associate Cancer Center Director for Translational Research, Yale Cancer Center

    Biography

    Barbara Burtness, MD is Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) at the Yale School of Medicine, Chief Translational Research Officer, and Associate Cancer Center Director for Translational Research at the Yale Cancer Center. She serves as Co-Leader of the Developmental Therapeutics Program, Division Chief for Head and Neck/Sarcoma Oncology, and Director of the Yale Head and Neck Specialized Program of Research Excellence. Dr. Burtness is internationally recognized for her research in head and neck cancer. She chairs the ECOG-ACRIN Cooperative Group Head and Neck Cancer Therapeutics Committee and the ECOG-ACRIN Task Force for the Advancement of Women, and leads national and international trials of targeted therapy in head and neck cancer. Her laboratory studies synthetic lethal therapeutic strategies in head and neck cancer and the targeting of aurora kinase A to overcome adaptive resistance to EGFR inhibition and - in lung cancer- to direct KRAS inhibition.

    Appointments

    Other Departments & Organizations

    Education & Training

    Fellowship
    Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (1993)
    Residency
    Yale-New Haven Hospital (1989)
    Internship
    Yale-New Haven Hospital (1987)
    MD
    SUNY at Stonybrook (1986)
    AB
    Bryn Mawr College (1982)

    Research

    Overview

    Studies of targeted treatments for EGFR expressed head and neck cancers, including biomarkers of resistance and novel strategies such as dual EGFR blockade, to overcome resistance. She has demonstrated that loss of PTEN indicates resistance to EGFR inhibition in head and neck cancer, and studied novel dual EGFR/HDAC inhibitors and combined antibody and tyrosine kinase inhibition as strategies to improve responsiveness to EGFR inhibition. She leads the ECOG-ACRIN Head and Neck Therapeutics Committee, which conducts large multicenter trials in head and neck cancer, and chairs multicenter trials of targeted therapy and immunotherapy in head and neck cancer. Her laboratory studies novel combinatorial therapies to target p53 mutated head and neck cancer.

    Medical Research Interests

    Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment; Chemicals and Drugs; Drug Therapy; Head and Neck Neoplasms; Medical Oncology

    Research at a Glance

    Yale Co-Authors

    Frequent collaborators of Barbara Burtness's published research.

    Publications

    2024

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    Clinical Trials

    Current Trials

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    Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

    • activity

      ECOG-ACRIN

      CommitteesMember
    • activity

      ECOG-ACRIN

      CommitteesChair
    • honor

      Leadership in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

      Yale School of Medicine AwardYale Cancer Center
    • honor

      Yale Cancer Center Clinical Science Prize

      Yale School of Medicine AwardYale Cancer Center
    • honor

      Wharton Lecturer

      International AwardPrincess Margaret Cancer Center
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    Clinical Care

    Overview

    Barbara Burtness, MD, is a Yale Medicine medical oncologist who sees patients at Yale Cancer Center. She has made it her life’s mission to help people diagnosed with head and neck cancer, which can be a devastating disease even after it is cured—it can impact a person’s appearance, as well as the ability to speak, swallow, and eat.

    “Patients often encounter unpleasant outcomes that can include difficulty swallowing solid foods, impaired nutrition, aspiration, and feeding tube dependence,” says Dr. Burtness. “Younger patients may have to deal with these side effects for decades after cancer treatment.”

    A careful treatment approach can help prevent these problems. She and her team evaluate the tumor location and decide which primary treatment (surgery or radiation therapy) will best cure the cancer and cause the fewest possible negative outcomes.

    A professor of medicine at Yale School of Medicine, Dr. Burtness’ research lab is actively studying new cures for head and neck cancers. “We want to help improve these patients’ quality of life,” she says.

    Clinical Specialties

    Internal Medicine; Medical Oncology

    Fact Sheets

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    Board Certifications

    • Internal Medicine

      Certification Organization
      AB of Internal Medicine
      Original Certification Date
      1989

    Yale Medicine News

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    Are You a Patient?

    View this doctor's clinical profile on the Yale Medicine website for information about the services we offer and making an appointment.

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    Contacts

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    Academic Office Number
    Appointment Number
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    Locations

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