Adrienne G. Waks, MD

Medical Oncology

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Contact Information

Office Phone Number

617-632-3800

Fax

617-632-1930

Appointments

617-632-2175

Biography

Adrienne G. Waks, MD

Dr. Waks received her undergraduate degree from Princeton University and her MD degree from Harvard Medical School. She completed residency training in internal medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, where she subsequently served an additional year as a chief resident in Internal Medicine. She completed fellowship training in medical oncology at Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare, then joined the staff of the Breast Oncology Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Dr. Waks conducts clinical and translational research with the goal of expanding treatment options and developing more individualized treatment approaches for breast cancer patients. She leads clinical trials across all breast cancer subtypes, and is an active member of national clinical trial groups including the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology and the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium. As the associate director for Clinical Research in breast oncology, she helps to oversee all breast oncology clinical trials at Dana-Farber. She is also passionate about partnering with laboratory scientists to identify markers that can determine which patient will benefit from which treatment. Her research has been supported by the National Cancer Institute, Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Susan G. Komen, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Researcher

Physician

Associate Director, Breast Oncology Clinical Research

Senior Physician

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Centers/Programs

Breast Oncology

Clinical Interests

Breast cancer, Immuno-oncology, Novel therapies, Novel therapies for breast cancer

Diseases Treated

Breast Cancer

Board Certification

Internal Medicine, 2014
Medical Oncology, 2017

Fellowship

Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare, Hematology & Oncology

Residency

Brigham and Women's Hospital, Chief Resident in Internal Medicine
Brigham and Women's Hospital, Internal Medicine

Medical School

Harvard Medical School

Recent Awards

George P. Canellos, MD Award for Excellence in Clinical Investigation, DFCI 2025

Research

View Dr. Waks’s Research

Dr. Waks helps oversee all breast cancer clinical trials at Dana-Farber and partners with laboratory scientists to identify markers that can determine which patient will benefit from which treatment.

Publications

View Dr. Waks's Publications

HER2DX in HER2-positive inflammatory breast cancer: correlative insights and comparative analysis with noninflammatory breast cancers. ESMO Open. 2025 Jan 17; 10(2):104100. View in: Pubmed
ASO Visual Abstract: Real-World Implications of the SOUND Trial. Ann Surg Oncol. 2025 Jan; 32(1):121-122. View in: Pubmed
An estrogen receptor signaling transcriptional program linked to immune evasion in human hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. bioRxiv. 2024 Nov 25. View in: Pubmed
HER2DX genomic test in early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer. ESMO Open. 2024 Dec; 9(12):103987. View in: Pubmed
Estrogen Signaling in Early-Stage Breast Cancer: Impact on Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy. Cancer Treat Rev. 2025 Jan; 132:102852. View in: Pubmed
Incorporating immunotherapy in the management of early-stage estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. ESMO Open. 2024 Nov; 9(11):103977. View in: Pubmed
Real-World Implications of the SOUND Trial. Ann Surg Oncol. 2024 Dec; 31(13):8776-8785. View in: Pubmed
Dual HER2 inhibition: mechanisms of synergy, patient selection, and resistance. Nat Rev Clin Oncol. 2024 Nov; 21(11):818-832. View in: Pubmed
Generative artificial intelligence as a source of breast cancer information for patients: Proceed with caution. Cancer. 2025 Jan 01; 131(1):e35521. View in: Pubmed
Subcutaneous vs Intravenous Trastuzumab/Pertuzumab: A Time and Motion Substudy of a Phase II Trial of Adjuvant Trastuzumab/Pertuzumab for Stage I HER2+ Breast Cancer (ADEPT trial). JCO Oncol Pract. 2024 Jul 19; OP2400021. View in: Pubmed
Adjuvant Trastuzumab Emtansine Versus Paclitaxel Plus Trastuzumab for Stage I Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Breast Cancer: 5-Year Results and Correlative Analyses From ATEMPT. J Clin Oncol. 2024 Nov; 42(31):3652-3665. View in: Pubmed
Prognosis and treatment outcomes for patients with stage IA triple-negative breast cancer. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2024 Apr 04; 10(1):26. View in: Pubmed
Analytical validation of HER2DX genomic test for early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer. ESMO Open. 2024 Mar; 9(3):102903. View in: Pubmed
HER2 heterogeneity and treatment response-associated profiles in HER2-positive breast cancer in the NCT02326974 clinical trial. J Clin Invest. 2024 Feb 01; 134(7). View in: Pubmed
Axillary Nodal Response to Neoadjuvant T-DM1 Combined with Pertuzumab in a Prospective Phase II Multi-Institution Clinical Trial. J Am Coll Surg. 2024 Mar 01; 238(3):303-311. View in: Pubmed
Association of HER2DX with pathological complete response and survival outcomes in HER2-positive breast cancer. Ann Oncol. 2023 09; 34(9):783-795. View in: Pubmed
Assessment of a Genomic Assay in Patients With ERBB2-Positive Breast Cancer Following Neoadjuvant Trastuzumab-Based Chemotherapy With or Without Pertuzumab. JAMA Oncol. 2023 06 01; 9(6):841-846. View in: Pubmed
Assessment of the HER2DX Assay in Patients With ERBB2-Positive Breast Cancer Treated With Neoadjuvant Paclitaxel, Trastuzumab, and Pertuzumab. JAMA Oncol. 2023 06 01; 9(6):835-840. View in: Pubmed
Genomics of ERBB2-Positive Breast Cancer in Young Women Before and After Exposure to Chemotherapy Plus Trastuzumab. JCO Precis Oncol. 2023 06; 7:e2300076. View in: Pubmed
Impact of Neoadjuvant Paclitaxel/Trastuzumab/Pertuzumab on Breast Tumor Downsizing for Patients with HER2+ Breast Cancer: Single-Arm Prospective Clinical Trial. J Am Coll Surg. 2023 08 01; 237(2):247-256. View in: Pubmed
Individualizing Curative-Intent Therapy in HER2-Positive Early-Stage Breast Cancer. Curr Treat Options Oncol. 2023 05; 24(5):479-495. View in: Pubmed
Nodal positivity and systemic therapy among patients with clinical T1-T2N0 human epidermal growth factor receptor-positive breast cancer: Results from two international cohorts. Cancer. 2023 06 15; 129(12):1836-1845. View in: Pubmed
Adjuvant paclitaxel and trastuzumab for node-negative, HER2-positive breast cancer: final 10-year analysis of the open-label, single-arm, phase 2 APT trial. Lancet Oncol. 2023 03; 24(3):273-285. View in: Pubmed
Phase Ib study of pembrolizumab in combination with trastuzumab emtansine for metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. J Immunother Cancer. 2022 10; 10(10). View in: Pubmed
Somatic and Germline Genomic Alterations in Very Young Women with Breast Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 06 01; 28(11):2339-2348. View in: Pubmed
A prospective trial of treatment de-escalation following neoadjuvant paclitaxel/trastuzumab/pertuzumab in HER2-positive breast cancer. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2022 May 10; 8(1):63. View in: Pubmed
Aiming at a Tailored Cure for ERBB2-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Review. JAMA Oncol. 2022 04 01; 8(4):629-635. View in: Pubmed
Prospective Study Testing a Simplified Paclitaxel Premedication Regimen in Patients with Early Breast Cancer. Oncologist. 2021 11; 26(11):927-933. View in: Pubmed
The Immunology of Hormone Receptor Positive Breast Cancer. Front Immunol. 2021; 12:674192. View in: Pubmed
Impact of HER2 Heterogeneity on Treatment Response of Early-Stage HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Phase II Neoadjuvant Clinical Trial of T-DM1 Combined with Pertuzumab. Cancer Discov. 2021 10; 11(10):2474-2487. View in: Pubmed
Acquired FGFR and FGF Alterations Confer Resistance to Estrogen Receptor (ER) Targeted Therapy in ER+ Metastatic Breast Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2020 11 15; 26(22):5974-5989. View in: Pubmed
The Genomic Landscape of Intrinsic and Acquired Resistance to Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4/6 Inhibitors in Patients with Hormone Receptor-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer. Cancer Discov. 2020 08; 10(8):1174-1193. View in: Pubmed
Avoiding Peg-Filgrastim Prophylaxis During the Paclitaxel Portion of the Dose-Dense Doxorubicin-Cyclophosphamide and Paclitaxel Regimen: A Prospective Study. J Clin Oncol. 2020 07 20; 38(21):2390-2397. View in: Pubmed
Reversion and non-reversion mechanisms of resistance to PARP inhibitor or platinum chemotherapy in BRCA1/2-mutant metastatic breast cancer. Ann Oncol. 2020 05; 31(5):590-598. View in: Pubmed
A phase II feasibility study of palbociclib in combination with adjuvant endocrine therapy for hormone receptor-positive invasive breast carcinoma. Ann Oncol. 2019 Sep; 30(9):1514-1520. View in: Pubmed
A phase II feasibility study of palbociclib in combination with adjuvant endocrine therapy for hormone receptor-positive invasive breast carcinoma. Ann Oncol. 2019 09 01; 30(9):1514-1520. View in: Pubmed
The Immune Microenvironment in Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer Before and After Preoperative Chemotherapy. Clin Cancer Res. 2019 08 01; 25(15):4644-4655. View in: Pubmed
Breast Cancer Treatment: A Review. JAMA. 2019 Jan 22; 321(3):288-300. View in: Pubmed
Breast Cancer Treatment. JAMA. 2019 01 22; 321(3):316. View in: Pubmed
Acquired HER2 mutations in ER+ metastatic breast cancer confer resistance to estrogen receptor-directed therapies. Nat Genet. 2019 02; 51(2):207-216. View in: Pubmed
Scalable whole-exome sequencing of cell-free DNA reveals high concordance with metastatic tumors. Nat Commun. 2017 11 06; 8(1):1324. View in: Pubmed
Timeliness in Breast Cancer Treatment-The Sooner, the Better. JAMA Oncol. 2016 Mar; 2(3):302-4. View in: Pubmed
Fertility Preservation in Patients With Breast Cancer: Necessity, Methods, and Safety. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2016 03; 14(3):355-63. View in: Pubmed
The evolving understanding of small HER2-positive breast cancers: matching management to outcomes. Future Oncol. 2015; 11(24):3261-71. View in: Pubmed
Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia (PCP) in patients receiving neoadjuvant and adjuvant anthracycline-based chemotherapy for breast cancer: incidence and risk factors. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2015 Nov; 154(2):359-67. View in: Pubmed
Metastasis to the Cervix Uteri 15 Years After Treatment of Lobular Carcinoma of the Breast. Semin Oncol. 2015 Aug; 42(4):e81-94. View in: Pubmed
Long-term follow-up after preoperative trastuzumab and chemotherapy for HER2-overexpressing breast cancer. Clin Breast Cancer. 2015 Feb; 15(1):24-30. View in: Pubmed
Sentinel lymph node biopsy in pregnant women with breast cancer. Ann Surg Oncol. 2014 Aug; 21(8):2506-11. View in: Pubmed
Metastatic basal cell carcinoma of the posterior neck: case report and review of the literature. J Cutan Pathol. 2012 May; 39(5):526-34. View in: Pubmed
Breast cancer survivors' perceptions of survivorship care options. J Clin Oncol. 2012 Jan 10; 30(2):158-63. View in: Pubmed
Knowledge base and caretaker-child communication about HIV in peri-urban schoolchildren of Lusaka, Zambia. AIDS Care. 2011 May; 23(5):646-53. View in: Pubmed
Schistosomiasis haematobium prevalence and risk factors in a school-age population of peri-urban Lusaka, Zambia. J Trop Pediatr. 2010 Aug; 56(4):247-53. View in: Pubmed