Margaret A. Tempero, MD

Rombauer Family Distinguished Professorship in Pancreas Cancer Clinical and Translational Science, UCSF

Director, UCSF Pancreas Center; Leader, Pancreas Cancer Program; Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, UCSF

Cancer Center Program Membership

Molecular Oncology

Research Summary

I am Director, UCSF Pancreas Center and Leader of the UCSF Pancreas Cancer Program. My research career has focused on pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, especially in the area of investigational therapeutics. I was a pioneer in the use of antibody-based therapies and helped develop the fixed dose rate concept for gemcitabine. My group has developed effective gemcitabine combinations and provided a foundation for using CA19-9 as a surrogate for survival in clinical trials, and currently is assessing molecular subtypes and molecular enrichment for selecting new drugs for clinical evaluation. I directed the first GI SPORE devoted to pancreatic cancer when I was on the faculty of the University of Nebraska and subsequently led the NCI-funded U54 Molecular Target Assessment Team at UCSF. I also organized the first Pancreas Cancer Think Tank in 1999 and co-led the NCI sponsored Progress Review Group on Pancreatic Cancer in 2000. I have served as the Chair of the NCCN Guidelines Panel on Pancreatic Cancer since 2000. I also serve as co-chair on the Pancreas Task Force Tissue Acquisition Working Group for the NCI intergroup and co-organized the State of the Science meeting on pancreatic cancer at the NCI.

I have extensive experience in scientific review and administration, training and oversight. I co-directed the AACR/ASCO Methods in Clinical Cancer Research in Vail for three years and spent nine years of service teaching this course and similar courses in Europe and Australia. I was founding Chair of the NCI Clinical Oncology Study Section (CONC) and served as a member and Chair (two-year term) of the NCI Board of Scientific Counselors Subcommittee A. I am on the External Advisory Boards of the Pancreas SPORE at the University of Alabama in Birmingham/University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic.

I am, or have been, on the Scientific Advisory Boards of the Lustgarten Foundation, the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, the V Foundation, The Alberta Canada Cancer Board and the EORTC. I have held many appointments at AACR and ASCO and served as a member of the ASCO Board of Directors and as ASCO President in 2004. I served as a member of the Oncology Drug Advisory Committee for the FDA from 2007-2011. I served as Deputy Director and Interim Director for the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center until 1999, and Chief of the Division of Medical Oncology at UCSF (2000-2007) and Deputy Director and Director of Research Programs at the HDFCCC from 2000 to 2012.

Research Funding

  • July 1, 1984 - August 31, 2026 - Buffett Cancer Center Support Grant , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P30CA036727
  • August 5, 1999 - May 31, 2023 - Cancer Center Support Grant , Co-Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P30CA082103
  • September 15, 2014 - August 31, 2018 - Perioperative Stromal Depletion Strategies in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R21CA184429
  • September 26, 2001 - December 31, 2008 - Mechanism-Based Evaluations of ErbB-Targeted Agents , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: U54CA090788

Education

Creighton University, Omaha, NE, B.S., 1969, Medical Technology
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, M.S., 1974, Clinical Pathology
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, M.D., 1977, Medicine
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, Residency, 1980, Internal Medicine
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, Fellowship, 1983, Oncology

Honors & Awards

  • Editor-In-Chief, Journal Nat'l Comprehensive Cancer Network, 2014-Pres
  • Rombauer Family Distinguished Professorship in Pancreas Cancer Clinical and Translational Science, UCSF, 2012-Pres
  • Doris and Don Fisher Distinguished Professor in Clinical Research, UCSF, 2000-2012

Selected Publications

  1. Tempero M. Dying in the Queue and Where Is My Nurse? J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2023 Mar; 21(3):231.  View on PubMed
  2. Tempero M. Your Words Mean Something! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2023 Feb; 21(2):101.  View on PubMed
  3. Tempero M. Another New Beginning. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2023 Jan; 21(1):1.  View on PubMed
  4. Sinha M, Betts C, Zhang L, Griffith MJ, Solman I, Chen B, Liu E, Tamaki W, Stultz J, Marquez J, Sivagnanam S, Cheung A, Pener D, Fahlman A, Taber E, Lerner K, Crocker M, Todd K, Rajagopalan B, Ware C, Bridge M, Vo J, Dragomanovich H, Sudduth-Klinger J, Vaccaro G, Lopez CD, Tempero M, Coussens LM, Fong L. Modulation of myeloid and T cells in vivo by Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib in patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. J Immunother Cancer. 2023 01; 11(1).  View on PubMed
  5. Tempero MA, Pelzer U, O'Reilly EM, Winter J, Oh DY, Li CP, Tortora G, Chang HM, Lopez CD, Bekaii-Saab T, Ko AH, Santoro A, Park JO, Noel MS, Frassineti GL, Shan YS, Dean A, Riess H, Van Cutsem E, Berlin J, Philip P, Moore M, Goldstein D, Tabernero J, Li M, Ferrara S, Le Bruchec Y, Zhang G, Lu B, Biankin AV, Reni M, APACT Investigators. Adjuvant nab-Paclitaxel + Gemcitabine in Resected Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: Results From a Randomized, Open-Label, Phase III Trial. J Clin Oncol. 2022 Dec 15; JCO2201134.  View on PubMed
  6. Tempero M. Letter to Santa. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 Dec; 20(12):1279.  View on PubMed
  7. Tempero M. Welcome Aboard! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 11; 20(11):1189.  View on PubMed
  8. Seufferlein T, Uhl W, Kornmann M, Alg?l H, Friess H, K?nig A, Ghadimi M, Gallmeier E, Bartsch DK, Lutz MP, Metzger R, Wille K, Gerdes B, Schimanski CC, Graupe F, Kunzmann V, Klein I, Geissler M, Staib L, Waldschmidt D, Bruns C, Wittel U, Fichtner-Feigl S, Daum S, Hinke A, Blome L, Tannapfel A, Kleger A, Berger AW, Kestler AMR, Schuhbaur JS, Perkhofer L, Tempero M, Reinacher-Schick AC, Ettrich TJ. Perioperative or only adjuvant gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel for resectable pancreatic cancer (NEONAX)-a randomized phase II trial of the AIO pancreatic cancer group. Ann Oncol. 2023 01; 34(1):91-100.  View on PubMed
  9. Tempero M. We Are Winning This War! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 10; 20(10):1073.  View on PubMed
  10. Tempero M. Together Again! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 09; 20(9):965.  View on PubMed
  11. Tempero M. My Report Card. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 08; 20(8):853.  View on PubMed
  12. Tempero M. Failure Doesn't Feel Good! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 07; 20(7):737.  View on PubMed
  13. Tempero M. I Cannot Afford This! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 06; 20(6):615.  View on PubMed
  14. Tempero M. Out in the World Again. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 05; 20(5):429.  View on PubMed
  15. Tempero M. It's OK to Share! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 04; 20(4):317.  View on PubMed
  16. Walker EJ, Blanco AM, Carnevale J, Cinar P, Collisson EA, Tempero MA, Ko AH. The Additional Diagnostic Benefit of Pancreatic Cancer Molecular Profiling After Germline Testing. Pancreas. 2022 04 01; 51(4):302-304.  View on PubMed
  17. Tempero M. Getting Complex Therapies to More People: A Vexing Dilemma. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 03; 20(3):217.  View on PubMed
  18. Tempero M. News About the Tiny Pharmacists Within Us. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 02; 20(2):99.  View on PubMed
  19. Burns S, Vella M, Paciorek A, Zhang L, Atreya CE, Feng M, Kelley RK, Tempero MA, Van Loon K, Ko AH. Characteristics and Growth Rate of Lung Metastases in Patients With Primary Gastrointestinal Malignancies and Lung-dominant Metastatic Disease: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis. Am J Clin Oncol. 2022 01 01; 45(1):22-27.  View on PubMed
  20. Tempero M. Starting Over, Again! J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2022 01; 20(1):1.  View on PubMed

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