Rodrigo Romero, PhD
Department of Genetics, Division of Discovery Science
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Member, James P. Allison Institute, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Assistant Professor, Genetics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2019 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, US, Biology, Doctor of Philosophy |
| 2012 | Suffolk University, Boston, MA, US, Biology, Bachelor of Science |
Postgraduate Training
| 2019-2026 | Postdoctoral Fellow, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York City, NY |
Experience & Service
Other Professional Positions
Undergraduate Student Researcher, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 2011 - 2011
Postbaccalaureate Intern, Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, MA, 2011 - 2013
Undergraduate Student Researcher, Suffolk University, Boston, MA, 2010 - 2011
Extramural Institutional Committee Activities
Member, G&E Orientation Committee, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Honors & Awards
| 2026 - Present | HBF Inspiration Award, Hopper Belmont Foundation |
| 2026 - Present | Scholar in Cancer Research, Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| 2026 | Forbeck Scholar Award, Forbeck Foundation |
| 2025 - Present | PCF Young Investigator Award, Prostate Cancer Foundation |
| 2025 - 2026 | Malcolm S. Forbes, Jr. Postdoctoral Fellow |
| 2024 | Biology Catalyst Postdoctoral Fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) |
| 2024 | NextGen Colloquium Fellow, MD Anderson Cancer Center James P. Allison Institute |
| 2024 | MERIT Emerging Leaders Fellow, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) |
| 2022 - Present | Senior Fellowship in Biomedical Science, Charles H. Revson Foundation |
| 2021 - 2022 | Exelixis Renal Cell Carcinoma Research Fellowship, American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) |
| 2020 | Hanna H. Gray Fellow Finalist, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) |
| 2019 - 2021 | T32: Translational Research in Oncology Training Award, National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
| 2017 - 2019 | F31: Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award, National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
| 2014 - 2017 | Graduate Research Fellowship, National Science Foundation |
Selected Presentations & Talks
Local Presentations
- 2026. Tracing Cellular Trajectories to Decode Cell Fate Transitions in Prostate Cancer. Invited. Department of Genetics Seminar Series. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2026. Tracing Cellular Trajectories to Decode Cell Fate Transitions in Prostate Cancer. Invited. Molecular Oncology Distinguished Scientist Seminar Series. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2024. Selected Speaker, James P. Allison Institute NextGen Colloquium. Houston, Texas, US.
National Presentations
- 2026. Deconstructing Lineage Plasticity: Mapping Determinants of the Neuroendocrine Transition. Poster. Prostate Cancer Foundation Annual Scientific Retreat. Carlsbad, California, US.
- 2026. Deconstructing Lineage Plasticity: Mapping Determinants of the Neuroendocrine Transition. Poster. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories Mechanisms and Models of Cancer. Cold Spring Harbor, New York, US.
- 2026. Immunocompetent Allograft Models & Lineage Plasticity. Invited. Prostate Cancer Foundation Annual Scientific Retreat. Carlsbad, California, US.
- 2026. Forbeck Foundation Scholars Retreat. Invited. Forbeck Foundation Scholars Retreat. Lake Geneva, WI, US.
- 2025. Elucidating Determinants of Neuroendocrine Plasticity in Prostate Cancer. Poster, Prostate Cancer Foundation Annual Scientific Retreat. Carlsbad, CA, US.
- 2024. Invited Dept. Seminar Speaker, Cancer Biology & Genetics Program. New York, NY, US.
- 2024. Invited Dept. Seminar Speaker, Langone Health Perlmutter Cancer Center. New York, NY, US.
- 2024. Selected Speaker, Mechanisms & Models of Cancer. Cold Spring Harbor, NY, US.
- 2024. Speaker, Biomedical Annual Meeting. New York, NY, US.
- 2024. Selected Speaker, Biology Catalyst Symposium. Cambridge, MA, US.
- 2024. Invited Seminar Speaker, U24 Small Cell Lung Cancer Consortium. Zoom.
- 2023. Poster, Biomedical Annual Meeting. New York, NY, US.
- 2023. Selected Speaker & Best Talk Winner, Postdoctoral Symposium. New York, NY, US.
- 2023. Poster, Tumour Landscape: Translating Mechanisms to Therapy. New York, NY, US.
- 2023. Poster, HHMI Scientific Meetings. Chevy Chase, MD, US.
- 2022. Speaker, Human Oncology & Pathogenesis Program, WIP. New York, NY, US.
- 2022. Poster & Best Poster Winner, Geoffrey Beane Cancer Retreat. Weehawken, NJ, US.
- 2022. Speaker, New York Prostate Club. New York, NY, US.
- 2020. Speaker, Hanna H. Gray Finalist Symposium. Zoom.
- 2018. Poster, HHMI Scientific Meetings. Chevy Chase, MD, US.
- 2018. Poster, Mechanisms & Models of Cancer. Cold Spring Harbor, NY, US.
- 2017. Poster, Advances in Modeling Cancer in Mice. Orlando, FL, US.
International Presentations
- 2025. Elucidating Drivers of Neuroendocrine Plasticity in Mouse Models of Prostate Cancer. Invited. Selected Speaker, 2nd Animal Models of Cancer Conference. Punta Cana, DO.
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Romero R, Chu T, Gonzalez Robles TJ, Smith P, Xie Y, Kaur H, Yoder S, Zhao H, Mao C, Kang W, Pulina MV, Lawrence KE, Gopalan A, Zaidi S, Yoo K, Choi J, Fan N, Gerstner O, Karthaus WR, DeStanchina E, Ruggles KV, Westcott PMK, Chaligne R, Pe'er D, Sawyers CL. The neuroendocrine transition in prostate cancer is dynamic and dependent on ASCL1. Nat Cancer 5(11):1641-1659, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 39394434.
- Naranjo S, Cabana CM, LaFave LM, Romero R, Shanahan SL, Bhutkar A, Westcott PMK, Schenkel JM, Ghosh A, Liao LZ, Del Priore I, Yang D, Jacks T. Modeling diverse genetic subtypes of lung adenocarcinoma with a next-generation alveolar type 2 organoid platform. Genes Dev 36(15-16):936-949, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36175034.
- Patel RS, Romero R, Watson EV, Liang AC, Burger M, Westcott PMK, Mercer KL, Bronson RT, Wooten EC, Bhutkar A, Jacks T, Elledge SJ. A GATA4-regulated secretory program suppresses tumors through recruitment of cytotoxic CD8 T cells. Nat Commun 13(1):256, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35017504.
- Feng W, Cao Z, Lim PX, Zhao H, Luo H, Mao N, Lee YS, Rivera AA, Choi D, Wu C, Han T, Romero R, de Stanchina E, Carver BS, Wang Q, Jasin M, Sawyers CL. Rapid interrogation of cancer cell of origin through CRISPR editing. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 118(32), 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34353917.
- Romero R, Sanchez-Rivera FJ, Westcott PMK, Mercer KL, Bhutkar A, Muir A, Gonzalez Robles TJ, Lamboy Rodriguez S, Liao LZ, Ng SR, Li L, Colon CI, Naranjo S, Beytagh MC, Lewis CA, Hsu PP, Bronson RT, Vander Heiden MG, Jacks T. Keap1 mutation renders lung adenocarcinomas dependent on Slc33a1. Nat Cancer 1(6):589-602, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 34414377.
- Li L, Ng SR, Colon CI, Drapkin BJ, Hsu PP, Li Z, Nabel CS, Lewis CA, Romero R, Mercer KL, Bhutkar A, Phat S, Myers DT, Muzumdar MD, Westcott PMK, Beytagh MC, Farago AF, Vander Heiden MG, Dyson NJ, Jacks T. Identification of DHODH as a therapeutic target in small cell lung cancer. Sci Transl Med 11(517), 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31694929.
- Romero R, Sayin VI, Davidson SM, Bauer MR, Singh SX, LeBoeuf SE, Karakousi TR, Ellis DC, Bhutkar A, Sanchez-Rivera FJ, Subbaraj L, Martinez B, Bronson RT, Prigge JR, Schmidt EE, Thomas CJ, Goparaju C, Davies A, Dolgalev I, Heguy A, Allaj V, Poirier JT, Moreira AL, Rudin CM, Pass HI, Vander Heiden MG, Jacks T, Papagiannakopoulos T. Keap1 loss promotes Kras-driven lung cancer and results in dependence on glutaminolysis. Nat Med 23(11):1362-1368, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28967920.
- Sanchez-Rivera FJ, Papagiannakopoulos T, Romero R, Tammela T, Bauer MR, Bhutkar A, Joshi NS, Subbaraj L, Bronson RT, Xue W, Jacks T. Rapid modelling of cooperating genetic events in cancer through somatic genome editing. Nature 516(7531):428-31, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25337879.
- Rahal R, Frick M, Romero R, Korn JM, Kridel R, Chan FC, Meissner B, Bhang HE, Ruddy D, Kauffmann A, Farsidjani A, Derti A, Rakiec D, Naylor T, Pfister E, Kovats S, Kim S, Dietze K, Dorken B, Steidl C, Tzankov A, Hummel M, Monahan J, Morrissey MP, Fritsch C, Sellers WR, Cooke VG, Gascoyne RD, Lenz G, Stegmeier F. Pharmacological and genomic profiling identifies NF-kappaB-targeted treatment strategies for mantle cell lymphoma. Nat Med 20(1):87-92, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24362935.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified October 07, 2026