Alan D. D'Andrea, MD

Alan D. D'Andrea, MD

Radiation Oncology

Contact Information

Office Phone Number

617-632-2112

Fax

617-632-6069

Biography

Alan D. D'Andrea, MD

Dr. D’Andrea received his Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School in 1983. He completed his residency at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and a fellowship in pediatric hematology-oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Boston Children’s Hospital. He also completed a research fellowship at the Whitehead Institute of Biomedical Research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he cloned the receptor for erythropoietin, the major hormone for blood production. Dr. D’Andrea joined the Dana-Farber faculty in 1990. He is currently the Fuller-American Cancer Society Professor of Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School, the Director of the Center for DNA Damage and Repair, and the Director of the Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Dr. D’Andrea is internationally known for his research in the area of DNA damage and DNA repair. His laboratory also investigates the pathogenesis of Fanconi Anemia, a human genetic disease characterized by a DNA repair defect, bone marrow failure, and cancer predisposition.

A recipient of numerous academic awards, Dr. D’Andrea is a former Stohlman Scholar of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a Distinguished Clinical Investigator of the Doris Duke Charitable Trust, a recipient of the E. Mead Johnson Award from the Society for Pediatric Research, a recipient of the G.H.A. Clowes Memorial Award from the American Association for Cancer Research, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a member of the American Association for Cancer Research Academy, the National Academy of Medicine, and the National Academy of Sciences.

Researcher

Physician

Director, Susan F. Smith Center for Women's Cancers
Director of the Center for DNA Damage and Repair
Alvan T. and Viola D. Fuller American Cancer Society Professor of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School

Clinical Interests

Cancer susceptibility, Fanconi anemia, Gene therapy, Genetic risk

Board Certification

  • Pediatrics

Fellowship

  • Boston Children's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Residency

  • Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Medical School

  • Harvard Medical School

Recent Awards

  • Award of Merit, Fanconi Anemia Scientific Symposium 2002
  • E. Mead Johnson Award for Research in Pediatrics, Society for Pediatric Research 2001
  • Excellence in Research Award, American Academy of Pediatrics 1997
  • Member, National Academy of Medicine (NAM), 2017
  • Fellow, American Association for Cancer Research Academy, 2020
  • Member, National Academy of Sciences (NAS), 2021

Research

    Chromosome Instability and Susceptibility to Cancer

    Our laboratory examines the molecular signaling pathways which regulate the DNA damage response in mammalian cells. Disruption of these pathways, by germline or somatic mutation, leads to genomic instability, cellular sensitivity to ionizing radiation, and defective cell cycle checkpoints and DNA repair. These pathways are often disrupted in cancer cells, accounting for the chromosome instability and increased mutation frequency in human tumors.Our primary focus is the molecular pathogenesis of the human chromosome instability syndromes: Fanconi anemia (FA), ataxia-telangiectasia (AT), and Bloom syndrome (BS). FA is an autosomal-recessive cancer susceptibility disorder characterized by developmental defects and increased cellular sensitivity to DNA crosslinking agents. Seven FA genes have been cloned, and the encoded FA proteins interact in a novel signaling pathway. Five FA proteins (A, C, E, F, G) form a nuclear protein complex required for the monoubiquitination of the D2 protein. Activated D2 is targeted to chromatin, where it interacts with the BRCA1 and BRCA2 breast-cancer susceptibility gene products. Our research program addresses several aspects of this novel signaling pathway, including (1) the assembly, transport, and structure of the FA protein complex; (2) the enzymatic monoubiquitination and deubiquitination of the D2 protein; (3) the function of the chromatin-associated FA complex in cell cycle checkpoints and homologous recombination DNA repair; and (4) the identification of novel interacting proteins in these complexes.

    Research Departments

    Locations

    Location Avtar

    Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

    450 Brookline Avenue HIM 243 Boston, MA 02215
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    Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

    Location Avtar

    Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

    450 Brookline Avenue HIM 243 Boston, MA 02215
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    42.3374, -71.1082

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    Alan D. D'Andrea, MD

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