Skip to Content

'
Elizabeth A. Mittendorf, M.D., Ph.D.

Present Title & Affiliation

Primary Appointment

Assistant Professor, Department of Surgical Oncology, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Bio Statement

Dr. Mittendorf is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.  At MD Anderson, she focuses both her clinical and laboratory efforts on the study of breast cancer with a specific interest in  breast cancer immunotherapy. She is the Principal Investigator on a number of clinical protocols including the phase III PRESENT (Prevention of Recurrence in Early-Stage, Node-Positive Breast Cancer with Low to Intermediate HER2 Expression with NeuVax Treatment) study, a multicenter phase II trial investigating the efficacy of two additional HER2-derived peptide vaccines and a single institution investigator-initiated phase I trial evaluating combination immunotherapy with vaccines and trastuzumab. Her laboratory work is focused on identifying novel tumor antigens and investigating aspects of the tumor microenvironment that impact the response to vaccination. Specifically she is investigating cyclin E, a critical cell cycle regulator that is dysregulated in breast cancer as a target for vaccination as well as the impact of neutrophils present in the microenvironment as a link between innate immunity and adaptive immune responses to cancer. This work is supported by an R00 award from the National Cancer Institute, a Developmental Project award form the MD Anderson Cancer Center Breast SPORE grant and a Clinical Investigator Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology and Komen for the Cure Foundation. Dr Mittendorf has published extensively on breast cancer immunotherapy as well as on subjects related to the clinical management of breast cancer patients to include sentinel lymph node dissection, small volume metastatic disease, and outcomes following administration of neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Dr. Mittendorf completed medical school at Case Western Reserve University where she remained for her surgical residency. After completing her residency, she served on active duty in the United States military before completing a surgical oncology fellowship at MD Anderson. She joined the faculty at MD Anderson in 2008.

Education & Training

Degree-Granting Education

2012 The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston, Houston, TX, PHD, Immunology
1996 Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, MD, Medicine
1992 Duke University, Durham, NC, BSE, Biomedical Engineering

Postgraduate Training

7/2005-6/2008 Clinical Fellowship, Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
6/1997-6/2000 Clinical Residency, General Surgery, Case Western Reserve University Integrated Surgical Residency, Cleveland, OH

Experience/Service

Military or Other Governmental Service

Major, United States Air Force, 7/2001-7/2005

Institutional Committee Activities

Member, Scientific Publication Advisory Board, MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2012-present
Member, Division of Surgery Clinical Research Council, 2012-present
Member, Clinical Research Committee, MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2010-present

Honors and Awards

2012 Breast Cancer Global Affair Award, Charmingly Pink Breast Cancer Coalition

Selected Publications

Peer-Reviewed Original Research Articles
1. Caudle AS, Hunt KK, Tucker SL, Hoffman K, Gainer SM, Lucci A, Kuerer HM, Meric-Bernstam F, Shah R, Babiera GV, Sahin AA, Mittendorf EA. American College of Surgeons (ACOSOG) Z0011: Impact on surgeon practice patterns. Ann Surg Oncol 19(10):3144-3151, 2012.
2. Mittendorf EA, Alatrash G, Qiao N, Wu Y, Sukhumalchandra P, St John L, Philips AV, Xiao H, Zhang M, Ruisaard K, Clise-Dwyer K, Lu S, Molldrem JJ. Breast cancer cell uptake of the inflammatory mediator neutrophil elastase triggers an anti-cancer adaptive immune response. Cancer Res 72(13):3153-3162, 2012.
3. Alatrash G, Mittendorf EA, Sergeeva A, Sukhumalchandra P, Qiao N, Zhang M, St John LS, Ruisaard K, Haugen CE, Al-Atrache Z, Jakher H, Philips AV, Ding X, Chen JQ, Wu Y, Patenia RS, Bernatchez C, Vence LM, Radvanyi LG, Hwu P, Clise-Dwyer K, Ma Q, Lu S, Molldrem JJ (Alatrash G, Mittendorf EA are Co-First Authors). Broad cross-presentation of the hematopoietically-derived PR1 antigen on solid tumors leads to susceptibility to PR1-targeted immunotherapy. (Featured on the cover). J Immunol 189(11):5476-84, 2012. PMID: 23105141.
4. Gainer SM, Hunt KK, Beitsch P, Caudle AS, Mittendorf EA, Lucci A. Changing behavior in clinical practice in response to the ACOSOG Z0011 trial: A survey of the American Society of Breast Surgeons. Ann Surg 19(10):3152-3158, 2012.
5. Mittendorf EA, Clifton GT, Holmes JP, Clive KS, Patil R, Benavides LC, Gates JD, Sears AK, Stojadinovic A, Ponniah S, Peoples GE. Clinical trial results of the HER2/neu (E75) vaccine to prevent breast cancer recurrence in high-risk patients. Cancer 118(10):2594-2602, 2012.
6. Akay CL, Meric-Bernstam F, Hunt KK, Grubbs EG, Bedrosian I, Tucker SL, Kuerer HM, Hoffman KE, Babiera GV, Strom EA, Buchholz TA, Mittendorf EA. Evaluation of the MD Anderson prognostic index for local-regional recurrence after breast conserving therapy in patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Ann Surg Oncol 19(3):901-907, 2012.
7. Hunt KK, Ballman KV, McCall LM, Boughey JC, Mittendorf EA, Cox CE, Whitworth PW, Beitsch PD, Leitch AM, Buchholz TA, Morrow MA, Giuliano AE. Factors associated with local-regional recurrence following a negative sentinel node dissection: results of the ACOSOG Z0010 trial. Ann. Surg 11(6):721-731, 2012.
8. Mittendorf EA, Hunt KK, Boughey JC, Bassett R, Degnim AC, Harrell R, Yi M, Meric-Bernstam F, Ross MI, Babiera GV, Kuerer HM, Hwang RF. Incorporation of sentinel lymph node metastasis size into a nomogram predicting non-sentinel lymph node involvement in breast cancer patients with a positive sentinel lymph node. Ann Surg 255(1):109-115, 2012.
9. Wagner JL, Warneke CL, Mittendorf EA, Bedrosian I, Babiera GV, Kuerer HM, Hunt KK, Yang W, Sahin AA, Meric-Bernstam F. Delays in primary surgical treatment are not associated with significant tumor size progression in breast cancer patients. Ann Surg 254(1):119-124, 2011. PMID: 21494124.
10. Roses RE, Arun BK, Lari SA, Mittendorf EA, Lucci A, Hunt KK, Kuerer HM. Ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast with subsequent distant metastasis and death. Ann Surg Oncol 18(10):2873-2878, 2011. PMID: 21476105.
11. Caudle AS, Gonzalez-Angulo AM, Hunt KK, Pusztai L, Kuerer HM, Mittendorf EA, Hortobagyi GN, Meric-Bernstam F. Impact of progression during neoadjuvant chemotherapy on surgical management of breast cancer. Ann Surg Oncol 18(4):932-938, 2011.
12. Nagar H, Mittendorf EA, Strom EA, Perkins G, Oh JL, Tereffe W, Woodward W, Gonzalez-Angulo AM, Hunt KK, Buchholz T, Yu TK. Local-regional recurrence for Clinically-Staged T3N0 breast cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy and mastectomy with and without radiation therapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 81(3):782-787, 2011.
13. Caudle AS, Hunt KK, Kuerer HM, Meric-Bernstam F, Lucci A, Bedrosian I, Babiera GV, Hwang RF, Ross MI, Feig BW, Hoffman K, Litton JK, Sahin AA, Yang W, Hortobagyi GN, Buchholz TA, Mittendorf EA. Multidisciplinary considerations concerning implementation of the findings from the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group (ACOSOG) Z0011 study: A practice-changing trial. Ann Surg Oncol 18(9):2407-2412, 2011.
14. Mittendorf EA, Wu Y, Meric-Bernstam F, Hunt KK, Dawood S, Esteva FJ, Buzdar AU, Chen H, Eksambi S, Hortobagyi GN, Gonzalez-Angulo AM. Loss of HER2 amplification following trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant systemic therapy and survival outcomes. (Featured on the cover). Clin Cancer Res 15(23):7381-7388, 2009.
15. Mittendorf EA, Sahin AA, Tucker SL, Meric-Bernstam F, Yi M, Nayeemuddin KM, Babiera GV, Ross MI, Feig BW, Kuerer HM, Hunt KK. Lymphovascular invasion and lobular histology are associated with increased incidence of isolated tumor cells in sentinel lymph nodes from early stage breast cancer patients. Ann Surg Oncol 15(12):3369-3377, 2008. PMID: 18815841.
16. Kuerer HM, Buzdar AU, Mittendorf EA, Esteva FJ, Lucci A, Vence LM, Radvanyi L, Hunt KK, Babiera GV, Meric-Bernstam F, Bedrosian I, Hwang R, Symmans WF. Biologic and immunologic effects of preoperative trastuzumab for ductal carcinoma in situ. Cancer 117(1):39-47, 2001.
17. Kim MA, Allen P, Gonzalez-Angulo AM, Woodward WA, Meric-Bernstam F, Buzdar AU, Hunt KK, Kuerer HM, Litton JK, Hortobagyi GN, Buchholz TA, Mittendorf EA. Pathologic complete response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy with trastuzumab predicts for improved survival in women with HER2-overexpressing breast cancer. J Clin Oncol, July 20, 2012. Submitted.

Invited Articles
1. Hale DF, Clifton GT, Sears AK, Vreeland TJ, Shumway N, Peoples GE, Mittendorf EA. Cancer Vaccines: Should We be Targeting Patients with Less Aggressive Disease? Expert Rev Vaccines 11(6):721-731, 2012.

Grant & Contract Support

Title: Impact of Breast Conservation Surgery on Surgical Outcomes and Cosmesis in Patients with Multiple Ipsilateral Breast Cancers (MIBC)
Funding Source: ACOSOG
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 9/24/2012 - 9/30/2014
 
Title: Evaluation of PD-L1 as a Target for Immunotherapy in Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Funding Source: Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 9/1/2012 - 8/31/2013
 
Title: PRESENT: Prevention of Recurrence in Early-Stage, Node-Positive Breast Cancer with Low to Intermediate HER2 Expression with NeuVax Treatment
Funding Source: Galena Biopharma
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 11/7/2011 - 11/6/2021
 
Title: Prospective, Randomized, Single-Blinded, Multi-Center Phase II Trial of the HER2/neu Peptide GP2+GM-CSF Vaccine versus GM-CSF Alone in HLA-A2+ or the Modified HER2/neu Peptide AE37+GM-CSF Vaccine versus GM-CSF Alone in HLA-A2- Node-Positive and High-Risk Node-Negative Breast Cancer Patients to Prevent Recurrence
Funding Source: Henry Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, U.S. Military Cancer Institute
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 3/4/2011 - 3/3/2014
 
Title: Phase I Trial of Combination Immunotherapy with a HER2/new Peptide Vaccine and Trastuzumab in Breast Cancer Patients
Funding Source: Society of Surgical Oncology Clinical Investigator Award
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 10/1/2010 - 9/30/2012
 
Title: Cyclin E: A Novel Target for Immunotherapy
Funding Source: NIH/NCI
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 9/1/2010 - 8/30/2013
 
Title: Development of Antibody-Targeted Peptide Vaccines as Novel Components of Combination Immunotherapy
Funding Source: Developmental Project, UTMDACC Spore in Breast Cancer
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 9/1/2010 - 8/31/2011
 
Title: Phase II Study Evaluating the Role of Sentinel Lymph Node Surgery and Axillary Lymph Node Dissection Following Preoperative Chemotherapy in Women with Node Positive Breast Cancer (T1-4, N1-2, M0) at Initial Diagnosis
Funding Source: American College of Surgeons
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 7/1/2009 - 10/31/2013
 
Title: HER2 and Cyclin E: Novel Interaction and Opportunities for Therapy
Funding Source: Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
Role: Principal Investigator
Duration: 7/1/2007 - 6/30/2010

Last updated: 2/20/2013