Damon Runyon Researchers

Early detection of lung cancer is associated with significantly better clinical outcomes. For this reason, CT-scan-based screenings in at-risk populations have been widely adopted, notably in people over 50 with a history of smoking. Still, other contributing factors include chronic exposure to environmental carcinogens, advanced age, and preexisting lung conditions. Compounding this complexity, not all precancerous lesions will evolve into invasive tumors, emphasizing the need to understand the mechanisms that govern the shift from benign to malignant states. To address this gap, Dr. Montégut [National Mah Jongg League Fellow] will focus on decoding the early immune system alterations that occur within the lung microenvironment during the pre-cancer-to-cancer transition. By doing so, she aims to identify molecular markers that indicate high-risk patients and pinpoint potential molecular targets, with the goal of intercepting tumors at a non-invasive stage. Dr. Montégut received her PhD from Paris-Saclay University, Paris, her MS from Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, and her MEng from Ecole Polytechnique, Palaiseau.