Nancy E. Davidson, MD

She earned her MD degree from Harvard Medical School and completed her internal medicine internship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and internal medicine residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Subsequently, Davidson completed a medical oncology fellowship at the NIH’s National Cancer Institute. Prior to joining Pitt, she served as director of the Breast Cancer Program and as the breast cancer research chair of oncology in Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Nancy E. Davidson is a world-renowned breast cancer researcher who serves as Hillman Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. She is a distinguished Professor of Medicine and associate vice chancellor for cancer research. She holds secondary appointments as professor of pharmacology and chemical biology and professor in the Clinical and Translational Science Institute.

Dr. Davidson has published key findings on the role of hormones, particularly estrogen, on gene expression and cell growth in breast cancer. She has guided several important national clinical trials of potential new therapies, including chemoendocrine therapy for premenopausal breast cancer. Her research has been supported by a portfolio of funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Defense, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and Susan Komen for the Cure.

Dr. Davidson has coauthored over 300 articles in the top journals of her field, including the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the National Cancer Institute, and the Journal of Clinical Oncology. She has won several awards, including being elected to membership in the Association of American Physicians and the Institute of Medicine. She received the honor of being named a Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher in 2014 and 2015.

A member of the scientific advisory board for many foundations and cancer centers, Davidson has served as an elected member of the boards of directors of the American Association of Cancer Research and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the two largest organizations for cancer researchers and oncology professionals in the world. She was president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology from 2007-2008. She is the current President of the American Association of Cancer Research.