I trained both as a scientist and as a physician and, throughout my career, I have focused on the treatment and biology of ovarian cancer (OvCa). My Ph.D. thesis was on the role of proteases in ovarian cancer and my clinical fellowship involved a special emphasis on the treatment of patients with this disease. As a surgeon and clinician, I am familiar with the presentation of ovarian cancer in patients, and experience the incredible obstacles we face in its treatment. In the laboratory, I have built the research infrastructure necessary for effective ovarian cancer research.
The Lengyel lab has elucidated, at least in part, the first critical steps of ovarian cancer metastasis by paying close attention to the host microenvironment. We have collected the 25 most commonly used ovarian cancer cell lines from all over the world, including those which are chemotherapy resistant. We have established several mouse models for OvCa, and using a genetic mouse model (K-rasG12D/+/Pten-/- -- established by Dr. Tyler Jacks), a syngeneic orthotopic mouse model using mouse OvCa cells (ID8 -- established by K. Roby), and several xenograft ip models using primary and cultured human OvCa cells. I have also established a prospective OvCa tissue bank and, together with 2 gynecologic pathologists, we have assembled 13 tissue arrays including normal tissue, borderline tumor and primary tumor, & corresponding metastasis. As a surgeon, the main focus of my practice is patients with OvCa; therefore, I will be able to enroll a substantial number of patients on the proposed clinical trial and have the infrastructure in place to collect the tissue required for the translational studies.
My clinical experience treating ovarian cancer, together with my laboratory, which focuses on OvCa biology, gives me a unique opportunity and obligation to find new treatments that can benefit patients with ovarian cancer.
University of Munich
Munich
M.D. - M.D.
1992
Radiation-induced amphiregulin drives tumour metastasis.
Radiation-induced amphiregulin drives tumour metastasis. Nature. 2025 May 14.
PMID: 40369065
Navitoclax, a Bcl-2/xL Inhibitor, and YM155, a Survivin Inhibitor, in Combination with Carboplatin, Effectively Inhibit Ovarian Cancer Tumor Growth.
Navitoclax, a Bcl-2/xL Inhibitor, and YM155, a Survivin Inhibitor, in Combination with Carboplatin, Effectively Inhibit Ovarian Cancer Tumor Growth. Mol Cancer Ther. 2025 Apr 28; OF1-OF13.
PMID: 40293279
Hybrid artificial intelligence echogenic components-based diagnosis of adnexal masses on ultrasound.
Hybrid artificial intelligence echogenic components-based diagnosis of adnexal masses on ultrasound. ArXiv. 2025 Apr 16.
PMID: 40321943
A Proteogenomic View of Synchronous Endometrioid Endometrial and Ovarian Cancer.
A Proteogenomic View of Synchronous Endometrioid Endometrial and Ovarian Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2025 Mar 27.
PMID: 40145935
LINE-1 ORF1p expression occurs in clear cell ovarian carcinoma precursors and is a candidate blood biomarker.
LINE-1 ORF1p expression occurs in clear cell ovarian carcinoma precursors and is a candidate blood biomarker. NPJ Precis Oncol. 2025 Mar 06; 9(1):62.
PMID: 40050409
O-RADS US Version 2022 Improves Patient Risk Stratification When Compared with O-RADS US Version 2019.
O-RADS US Version 2022 Improves Patient Risk Stratification When Compared with O-RADS US Version 2019. Radiology. 2025 Mar; 314(3):e242200.
PMID: 40100018
Metformin for patients with advanced stage ovarian cancer: A randomized phase II placebo-controlled trial.
Metformin for patients with advanced stage ovarian cancer: A randomized phase II placebo-controlled trial. Gynecol Oncol. 2025 Mar; 194:18-24.
PMID: 39923680
Molecular changes driving low-grade serous ovarian cancer and implications for treatment.
Molecular changes driving low-grade serous ovarian cancer and implications for treatment. Int J Gynecol Cancer. 2024 Oct; 34(10):1630-1638.
PMID: 40229117
A cell atlas of the human fallopian tube throughout the menstrual cycle and menopause.
A cell atlas of the human fallopian tube throughout the menstrual cycle and menopause. Nat Commun. 2025 Jan 03; 16(1):372.
PMID: 39753552
Neutrophil extracellular traps promote pre-metastatic niche formation in the omentum by expanding innate-like B cells that express IL-10.
Neutrophil extracellular traps promote pre-metastatic niche formation in the omentum by expanding innate-like B cells that express IL-10. Cancer Cell. 2025 Jan 13; 43(1):69-85.e11.
PMID: 39753138