Research Summary

Hope S. Rugo, MD, FASCO, is professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, where she is also the director of Breast Oncology and Clinical Trials Education. Dr. Rugo joined the Breast Care Center in 1999 after a decade of experience at University of California San Francisco in malignant hematology and bone marrow transplantation for a variety of diseases, including breast cancer. She entered the field of breast cancer in order to incorporate novel therapies based on an understanding of the biology of cancer with excellent quality of care into the treatment of women with breast cancer.

Dr. Rugo is the Director of Breast Oncology and Clinical Trials Education at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is a principal investigator of multiple clinical trials focusing on combining novel targeted therapeutics with standard treatment to improve the treatment of both early and late stage breast cancer, and has published widely in this area. Her current research interests include immunotherapy and combinations of targeted agents in the treatment of breast cancer to overcome resistance. She was a member of the steering committee for the EMBRACA and ABRAZO studies that evaluated the efficacy of the PARP inhibitor talazoparib in patients with metastatic breast cancer and germline mutations in BRCA1 and 2. In addition, Dr. Rugo has conducted a number of studies focusing on reducing toxicity from therapy, resulting in approval of scalp cooling to reduce chemotherapy induced hair loss, and a steroid mouthwash to reduce targeted agent stomatitis. She is an investigator and the chair of the Safety Committee for the multicenter adaptively randomized phase II I-SPY2 trial, and serves on the Novel Agents Committee. Dr. Rugo is the co-chair of the Triple Negative Working Group and an active member of the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium (TBCRC), and is the principal investigator of several TBCRC trials including a multi-center immunotherapy trial funded by the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). She is an active member of the Alliance (formerly CALGB) Breast Committee, as well as ASCO, where she serves on the Guidelines Committee and as an editor for the Education Committee.

In addition to her research, Dr. Rugo is an active clinician, and is committed to education, regularly lecturing locally, nationally and internationally on subjects relating to the treatment of and supportive care for breast cancer. At UCSF, Dr. Rugo runs the Breast Forum, an open bimonthly evening educational session for breast cancer patients, families and friends from throughout the bay area.

Dr. Rugo graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1983. She completed a residency in internal medicine and primary care followed by a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the University of California San Francisco. She was a post-doctoral fellow in immunology participating in laboratory research at Stanford University from 1988-1990. In 1990, Dr. Rugo joined the faculty at UCSF in the Division of Hematology and Oncology. Dr. Rugo recognized for her excellence in both patient care and in teaching of both medical students and training physicians. She has received several awards including the Bank of America Gianini Foundation Award and a UCSF Clinical Cancer Center Investigator Research Program intra-mural award. In 2006, she received an honor for her work in Breast Cancer Research by the Friends of the Breast Care Center and received the Cancer Care physician of the year award in 2010 by the Cancer Care National Organization.

Research Funding

  • December 1, 1974 - March 31, 2009 - General Clinical Research Center , Co-Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: M01RR000079

Education

Tufts University, BS, 1979, Chemistry
University of Pennsylvania, MD, 1984, Medicine
University of California San Francisco, 1987, Resident, Internal Medicine
University of California San Francisco, 1990, Fellow, Hematology/Oncology
Stanford University, 1988-90, Postdoctoral Fellowship, Microbiology/Immunology
DNAX Institute of Cellular and Molecular Biology, 1989-90, Visiting Scientist, Immunology

Honors & Awards

  • College
    Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi; Victor Prather Prize for Excellence in Scientific Research; Durkee Scholarship for promise and achievement in the field of chemistry; Max Tishler Prize Scholarship for outstanding achievement in the sciences
  • Medical School
    Henry Luce Scholar in the Philippines; Certificate of Commendation, Philadelphia Area Project on Occupational Safety and Health; National Health Service Corps Scholarship; Janet M. Glasgow Memorial Achievement Citation
  • 1990
    Awarded Bank of America Gianini Foundation Research Fellowship

Selected Publications

  1. Abel MK, Shui AM, Chien AJ, Rugo HS, Melisko M, Baehner F, Mukhtar RA. ASO Visual Abstract: The 21-Gene Recurrence Score in Clinically High Risk Lobular and Ductal Breast Cancer-A National Cancer Database Study. Ann Surg Oncol. 2022 11; 29(12):7750.  View on PubMed
  2. Cristofanilli M, Rugo HS, Im SA, Slamon DJ, Harbeck N, Bondarenko I, Masuda N, Colleoni M, DeMichele A, Loi S, Iwata H, O'Leary B, André F, Loibl S, Bananis E, Liu Y, Huang X, Kim S, Lechuga Frean MJ, Turner NC. Overall Survival with Palbociclib and Fulvestrant in Women with HR+/HER2- ABC: Updated Exploratory Analyses of PALOMA-3, a Double-blind, Phase III Randomized Study. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 08 15; 28(16):3433-3442.  View on PubMed
  3. Cortes J, Rugo HS, Cescon DW, Im SA, Yusof MM, Gallardo C, Lipatov O, Barrios CH, Perez-Garcia J, Iwata H, Masuda N, Torregroza Otero M, Gokmen E, Loi S, Guo Z, Zhou X, Karantza V, Pan W, Schmid P, KEYNOTE-355 Investigators. Pembrolizumab plus Chemotherapy in Advanced Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2022 07 21; 387(3):217-226.  View on PubMed
  4. Rugo HS, Umanzor GA, Barrios FJ, Vasallo RH, Chivalan MA, Bejarano S, Ramírez JR, Fein L, Kowalyszyn RD, Kramer ED, Wang H, Kwan MR, Cutler DL, Oraxol Study Consortium Investigators. Open-Label, Randomized, Multicenter, Phase III Study Comparing Oral Paclitaxel Plus Encequidar Versus Intravenous Paclitaxel in Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2022 Jul 20; JCO2102953.  View on PubMed
  5. Abel MK, Shui AM, Chien AJ, Rugo HS, Melisko M, Baehner F, Mukhtar RA. The 21-Gene Recurrence Score in Clinically High-Risk Lobular and Ductal Breast Cancer: A National Cancer Database Study. Ann Surg Oncol. 2022 Nov; 29(12):7739-7747.  View on PubMed
  6. Morgan G, Agarwal N, Choueiri TK, Dizon DS, Hamilton EP, Markham MJ, Lewis M, Prowell TM, Rugo HS, Subbiah V, West HL. The (R)evolution of Social Media in Oncology: Engage, Enlighten, and Encourage. Cancer Discov. 2022 07 06; 12(7):1620-1624.  View on PubMed
  7. Vidula N, Yau C, Rugo H. Trophoblast Cell Surface Antigen 2 gene (TACSTD2) expression in primary breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2022 Aug; 194(3):569-575.  View on PubMed
  8. Tripathy D, Tolaney SM, Seidman AD, Anders CK, Ibrahim N, Rugo HS, Twelves C, Diéras V, Müller V, Du Y, Currie SL, Hoch U, Tagliaferri M, Hannah AL, Cortés J, ATTAIN Investigators. Treatment With Etirinotecan Pegol for Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer and Brain Metastases: Final Results From the Phase 3 ATTAIN Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Oncol. 2022 07 01; 8(7):1047-1052.  View on PubMed
  9. Lee JV, Housley F, Yau C, Nakagawa R, Winkler J, Anttila JM, Munne PM, Savelius M, Houlahan KE, Van de Mark D, Hemmati G, Hernandez GA, Zhang Y, Samson S, Baas C, Esserman LJ, van 't Veer LJ, Rugo HS, Curtis C, Klefström J, Matloubian M, Goga A. Combinatorial immunotherapies overcome MYC-driven immune evasion in triple negative breast cancer. Nat Commun. 2022 06 27; 13(1):3671.  View on PubMed
  10. Corti C, Antonarelli G, Valenza C, Nicolò E, Rugo H, Cortés J, Harbeck N, Carey LA, Criscitiello C, Curigliano G. Histology-agnostic approvals for antibody-drug conjugates in solid tumours: is the time ripe? Eur J Cancer. 2022 08; 171:25-42.  View on PubMed
  11. Carey LA, Loirat D, Punie K, Bardia A, Diéras V, Dalenc F, Diamond JR, Fontaine C, Wang G, Rugo HS, Hurvitz SA, Kalinsky K, O'Shaughnessy J, Loibl S, Gianni L, Piccart M, Zhu Y, Delaney R, Phan S, Cortés J. Sacituzumab govitecan as second-line treatment for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer-phase 3 ASCENT study subanalysis. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2022 Jun 09; 8(1):72.  View on PubMed
  12. Modi S, Jacot W, Yamashita T, Sohn J, Vidal M, Tokunaga E, Tsurutani J, Ueno NT, Prat A, Chae YS, Lee KS, Niikura N, Park YH, Xu B, Wang X, Gil-Gil M, Li W, Pierga JY, Im SA, Moore HCF, Rugo HS, Yerushalmi R, Zagouri F, Gombos A, Kim SB, Liu Q, Luo T, Saura C, Schmid P, Sun T, Gambhire D, Yung L, Wang Y, Singh J, Vitazka P, Meinhardt G, Harbeck N, Cameron DA, DESTINY-Breast04 Trial Investigators. Trastuzumab Deruxtecan in Previously Treated HER2-Low Advanced Breast Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2022 07 07; 387(1):9-20.  View on PubMed
  13. Bui TBV, Burgering BMT, Goga A, Rugo HS, van 't Veer LJ. Biomarkers for Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4/6 Inhibitors in the Treatment of Hormone Receptor-Positive/Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Negative Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer: Translation to Clinical Practice. JCO Precis Oncol. 2022 06; 6:e2100473.  View on PubMed
  14. Gradishar WJ, Moran MS, Abraham J, Aft R, Agnese D, Allison KH, Anderson B, Burstein HJ, Chew H, Dang C, Elias AD, Giordano SH, Goetz MP, Goldstein LJ, Hurvitz SA, Isakoff SJ, Jankowitz RC, Javid SH, Krishnamurthy J, Leitch M, Lyons J, Mortimer J, Patel SA, Pierce LJ, Rosenberger LH, Rugo HS, Sitapati A, Smith KL, Smith ML, Soliman H, Stringer-Reasor EM, Telli ML, Ward JH, Wisinski KB, Young JS, Burns J, Kumar R. Breast Cancer, Version 3.2022, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 06; 20(6):691-722.  View on PubMed
  15. Hung JT, Chen IJ, Ueng SH, Huang CS, Chen SC, Chen MY, Lin YC, Lin CY, Campbell MJ, Rugo HS, Yu AL. The clinical relevance of humoral immune responses to Globo H-KLH vaccine adagloxad simolenin (OBI-822)/OBI-821 and expression of Globo H in metastatic breast cancer. J Immunother Cancer. 2022 06; 10(6).  View on PubMed
  16. Liao H, Pei W, Zhong J, Shao B, Liu X, Liu Y, Zhang J, Rugo HS, Li H. Efficacy and Safety of Initial 5 Years of Adjuvant Endocrine Therapy in Postmenopausal Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis. Front Pharmacol. 2022; 13:886954.  View on PubMed
  17. Wolf DM, Yau C, Wulfkuhle J, Brown-Swigart L, Gallagher RI, Lee PRE, Zhu Z, Magbanua MJ, Sayaman R, O'Grady N, Basu A, Delson A, Coppé JP, Lu R, Braun J, I-SPY2 Investigators, Asare SM, Sit L, Matthews JB, Perlmutter J, Hylton N, Liu MC, Pohlmann P, Symmans WF, Rugo HS, Isaacs C, DeMichele AM, Yee D, Berry DA, Pusztai L, Petricoin EF, Hirst GL, Esserman LJ, van 't Veer LJ. Redefining breast cancer subtypes to guide treatment prioritization and maximize response: Predictive biomarkers across 10 cancer therapies. Cancer Cell. 2022 06 13; 40(6):609-623.e6.  View on PubMed
  18. O'Shaughnessy J, Brufsky A, Rugo HS, Tolaney SM, Punie K, Sardesai S, Hamilton E, Loirat D, Traina T, Leon-Ferre R, Hurvitz SA, Kalinsky K, Bardia A, Henry S, Mayer I, Zhu Y, Phan S, Cortés J. Analysis of patients without and with an initial triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis in the phase 3 randomized ASCENT study of sacituzumab govitecan in metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2022 Sep; 195(2):127-139.  View on PubMed
  19. Borno HT, Kim MO, Hong JC, Yousefi S, Lin A, Tolstykh I, Zhang S, McKay RR, Harismendy O, Cinar P, Rugo H, Koshkin VS, Rabow M, Wang C, Bailey A, Small EJ. COVID-19 Outcomes Among Patients With Cancer: Observations From the University of California Cancer Consortium COVID-19 Project Outcomes Registry. Oncologist. 2022 05 06; 27(5):398-406.  View on PubMed
  20. Marczyk M, Mrukwa A, Yau C, Wolf D, Chen YY, Balassanian R, Nanda R, Parker BA, Krings G, Sattar H, Zeck JC, Albain KS, Boughey JC, Liu MC, Elias AD, Clark AS, Venters SJ, Shad S, Basu A, Asare SM, Buxton M, Asare AL, Rugo HS, Perlmutter J, DeMichele AM, Yee D, Berry DA, Veer LV, Symmans WF, Esserman L, Pusztai L, I-SPY Consortium. Treatment Efficacy Score-continuous residual cancer burden-based metric to compare neoadjuvant chemotherapy efficacy between randomized trial arms in breast cancer trials. Ann Oncol. 2022 08; 33(8):814-823.  View on PubMed

Go to UCSF Profiles, powered by CTSI