OCTOBER 2026 NEWSLETTER

Developing New Strategies to Fight Pancreatic Cancer

“If you work in oncology you have to work on difficult problems, because cancer is an extremely difficult problem.” That’s according to Leonidas Platanias, MD, PhD, the director of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.

Pancreatic cancer has proven to be one of the most difficult cancers to treat, Platanias said. Because it often displays no symptoms, spreads aggressively, and is notorious for shielding itself from the immune system, it’s just the sort of difficult problem that investigators at Feinberg are eager to take on.

Read the Feature

Pioneering Physician-Scientist Delivers 2026 Nemmers Prize Lecture

Jean-Laurent Casanova, MD, PhD, the recipient of the 2026 Mechthild Esser Nemmers Prize in Medical Science, known for his discovery of human genetic and immunological determinants of infectious diseases, visited campus to deliver the Nemmers Prize lecture on September 30.

Read about the lecture

Faculty Profile

Studying Psychosocial Factors that Influence Aging and Dementia

Eileen Graham, PhD, is associate professor of Medical Social Sciences in the Division of Social Determinants of Health. Her research focuses on the development of personality traits over the life course, and how these traits may influence physical health, onset of disease, cognitive decline and mortality.

Read more about her research

Staff Profile

Improving Interventions for Cancer Survivors

Fiona Webb is a research study assistant supporting the Exercise and Health Lab in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Feinberg. She is currently working on a clinical trial that examines how social support and mindfulness-based strategies can promote physical activity among breast cancer survivors.

Read about her work

Student Profile

Examining How Circadian Rhythms Influence Metabolism

Anneke Thorne is a PhD candidate in the Driskill Graduate Program in Life Sciences. In the laboratory of Joseph Bass, MD, PhD, Thorne’s work centers on how specialized fat cells burn energy to generate heat, a process known as adipose tissue thermogenesis.

Learn more about her research

Research News

Feinberg Research Funding Tops $750 Million

Principal investigators at Feinberg secured $758 million dollars in research funding and awards during the 2025-26 fiscal year, accounting for more than 74 percent of Northwestern University’s more than $1 billion in research funding.

This funding supports research projects that advance basic science, clinical research and translational developments. 

Read the full story

Breakthroughs Podcast

How Our Genes Predispose Us to Infection with Jean-Laurent Casanova, MD, PhD

In this episode, Jean-Laurent Casanova, MD, PhD, winner of the 2026 Nemmers Prize, discusses his paradigm-shifting discoveries and what they reveal about immunity, genetic predisposition and why some people develop life-threatening infections while others do not.

Listen to the podcast episode

Campus Events

Research in the News

Crain's Chicago Business — New Treatment Could Temper One of GLP-1s' Bigger Downsides, Northwestern Research Finds with Joseph Bass, MD, PhD

US News & World Report — Weight-Loss Meds Lead To Nutritional Deficits For Many Kids And Teens, Study Finds with Justin Ryder, PhD

HealthDay — Congenital Ichthyosis Linked to Allergic Disorders with Amy Paller, MD

Check out More Media Coverage

NUCATS Corner

Make Your Research More Transparent and Reproducible with StatWrap

StatWrap, developed by NUCATS, is a free and open-source research support tool designed to help teams document projects, organize metadata and identify sources of variation that may impact reproducibility. By creating an automated inventory of project assets and workflows, StatWrap makes it easier to manage and communicate research processes.

Try it for yourself: Explore StatWrap

Galter Library

Beyond the Systematic Review: Why Every Type of Evidence Matters

Ask a room of health sciences investigators what type of review they should conduct, and many will answer the same way: a systematic review.

Over the past decade, systematic and scoping reviews have become the most recognizable forms of evidence synthesis. Their popularity has created an unintended consequence. Many scientists now believe they are the only review types worth pursuing. But Galter librarians disagree.

Read the latest from the library

Sponsored Research

Defining the Role of Lymphatics in Pancreatitis Pathogenesis

Beatriz Sosa-Pineda, PhD, professor of Medicine in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, received a $2.9 million dollar grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to study the role of lymphatics in pancreatitis, which could shed light on the mechanisms to treat other inflammatory diseases.

Read about the project

High Impact Research

Abe C, Fujita SI, Shiba D, Tanaka K, Fujimoto C, Tokunaga S, Iwasaki S, Takahashi S, Muratani M, Morita H. Selective saccular plasticity under microgravity links peripheral transcriptomic remodeling to postflight vestibular dysfunction. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. Sep 2026; 123(35):e2605593123.

Abramson JS, Siddiqi T, Gordon LI, Lunning M, Wang M, Arnason J, Kamdar M, Maloney DG, Shadman M, Andreadis C, Sehgal A, Solomon SR, Ghosh N, Hidalgo-López JE, Wang J, Ding X, Ogasawara K, Singh A, Palomba ML. Five-year survival outcomes of lisocabtagene maraleucel in R/R LBCL from the TRANSCEND NHL 001 study. Blood. Sep 2026; 148(11):1388-1393.

Al-Dalakta A, Tabaja C, Alqahtani M, Wang TKM, Imazio M, Cremer PC, Luis SA, Lazaros G, Klein AL. From Hippocrates to Biologics, The Evolving History of Pericarditis: A Review. Circulation. Sep 2026; 154(13):1265-1275.

Aman S, Su S, Xie W, Cui J, Siwicka ZE, Zhou X, Rosenmann ND, Kirlikovali KO, Shawkey MD, Farha OK, Gianneschi NC. Catalytic Porous Metallized Melanin for the Remediation of Organophosphorus Agents. ACS Nano. Sep 2026; 20(35):24429-24438. 

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Featured Core

Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging

The Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging (CAMI) was created to drive interdisciplinary research, bridging the gap between basic science and science-based medicine, with an emphasis on in vivo imaging. CAMI provides a wide range of imaging instrumentation and support facilities for molecular imaging of biological events in intact organisms. We can also assist with medical image analysis and visualization.

Services Offered

• High field magnetic resonance imaging (Bruker 9.4T and 7T magnets)
• Preclinical nuclear imaging (MILabs U-SPECT+/CT and Mediso nanoScan PET/CT)
• Whole body bioluminescence and fluorescence imaging (IVIS Spectrum)
• High-resolution in vivo and specimen x-ray microCT (Bruker SkyScan 1276)
• Atomic force microscopy of live cells (operated by Scanning Probe Imaging and Development Facility)
• Surgery suite
• Free vivarium to imaging center transportation
• Certified Laboratory Animal Technologist (LATG) specializing in preclinical imaging
• Image analysis and visualization, including the use of our 20 foot 3D wall

Learn more about preclinical imaging and expertise.

NIH Notices

• NIH Webinar: A Conversation on Recent Updates Regarding Supporting a Safe and Respectful Workplace at Institutions that Receive NIH Funding
  (NOT-OD-26-115)
  Office of the Director, NIH
  
  
• Notice of Informational Webinar: NIH Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hubs (REACH)
  (NOT-OD-26-117)
  Office of the Director, NIH
  National Institute of General Medical Sciences
  
  
• Notice of Informational Webinar for RFA-AI-27-018, Implementation Science to Advance HIV Prevention, Treatment, and Care (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Optional)
  (NOT-AI-26-004)
  National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
  
  
• Accelerated Implementation of Data Management and Sharing Plan Changes for NIH Career Development (K) Awards
  (NOT-OD-26-120)
  Office of the Director, NIH

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