Beyond Genetics Program Faculty
Learn more about the experts in genomics and cancer, clinical specialists, and patient who helped put this program together.
Dr. Achong graduated with honors from the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education and received her Doctorate of Medicine from New York University School of Medicine. She completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Yale University School of Medicine and received her Executive Master of Healthcare Leadership from Brown University. She is on faculty at Yale’s Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences. She has been in academic practice in Connecticut for over fifteen years.
Dr. Achong worked to establish the first National Medical Association society in Connecticut and continues to provide leadership to the membership. Through her work as the Director of Health Equity for the Connecticut State Medical Society, she developed and executed health equity programs and initiatives. She was recently elected President of the Hartford County Medical Association.
Dr. Olga Anczuków is a breast cancer researcher who investigates how changes in gene regulation contribute to cancer. She studies RNA splicing – a crucial step in the process by which genetic instructions in DNA are translated into proteins. She investigates how changes in RNA splicing regulation contribute to tumor initiation, metastasis and drug resistance.
Dr. Anczuków obtained her Ph.D. from University Claude Bernard Lyon 1 in France. Her research uncovered that mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 breast-cancer-predisposing genes affect RNA splicing and stability, and contributed to improving the molecular diagnosis and classification of hereditary breast cancers. She then completed a postdoctoral training at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, demonstrating that splicing regulators are frequently expressed at high levels in human breast tumors and contribute to cancer initiation and metastasis. In June 2016, she joined, as an Assistant Professor, The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine in Farmington, CT. Her research uses patient-derived models and next-generation RNA-sequencing to identify alterations in RNA splicing in human breast tumors, with the goal of identifying more effective biomarkers and developing novel therapeutic strategies, especially for drug-resistant tumors.
Dr. Bolcun-Filas researches meiosis, the biological process of egg and sperm formation. Her research aims to understand the molecular mechanisms controlling the development of healthy gametes and how misregulation of these mechanisms can lead to reproductive disorders. In particular, she is interested in meiotic “quality checkpoints” operating in germ cells, which ensure that the correct and intact genetic information is transmitted to the next generation. That same checkpoint is responsible for the high sensitivity of oocytes to cancer treatment. Chemo and radiation therapies can cause oocyte death and lead to premature ovarian failure and infertility.
Dr. Bolcun-Filas obtained her Msc from Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland, her PhD in Developmental Biology from the Georg-August-Universitat, Institut fur Humangenetik, Gottingen, Germany, completed a post-doctoral fellowship at MRC Human Genetics Unit, Edinburgh, UK., and was a post-doctoral associate and research scientist at Cornell University until she joined The Jackson Laboratory in 2015.
Dr. Wylie D. Hosmer completed his undergraduate education at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine where he graduated cum laude and was honored with induction into Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi Honorary Research Society. Prior to his matriculation at the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. Hosmer pursued research activities at the University of California San Francisco in the Department of Internal Medicine. Dr. Hosmer completed a residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Hematology and Oncology at the University of California Los Angeles. He was a recipient of the esteemed Fellowship Teaching Award which is presented annually to a single fellow at the institution to honor dedication to medical education. At UCLA, Dr. Hosmer helped translate laboratory based research findings into clinical trials evaluating novel treatments in lung and pancreas cancer. He has published a number of professional and scientific articles. He is a practicing oncologist at the Cancer Center of Central Connecticut and the Hartford Healthcare Cancer Institute.
Dr. Menghi studies critical genomic changes implicated in ovarian and breast cancers. She aims to better understand the individuality of cancer genomes and develop novel approaches toward the personalized management of cancer patients.
Erin Parejko is a young breast cancer survivor and advocate. She is motivated to share her story to empower other women with a new breast cancer diagnosis. Erin founded a local network for young women through Susan Komen Southern New England and the Young Survival Coalition. Erin is very proactive in raising awareness about breast cancer, providing emotional support to others, and leading a healthy, active lifestyle.
Camille Servodidio has worked in oncology for over 30 years. She attended Georgetown University in Washington, DC for her BSN and Columbia University for her MPH. She is certified in four areas: oncology nursing, breast care, research and nurse executive. She has contributed numerous articles to the oncology nursing literature and has served on several editorial boards. She is the past president of the Central Connecticut Oncology Nursing Society and has served on national boards and committees in oncology nursing. Presently, she is the Program Manager of Women's Oncology Services at the Yale New Haven Smilow Cancer Center.
