Meet Janet Tu, M.D.
Janet Tu, M.D.
Department of General Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine
About Dr. Tu
Janet Tu did her undergraduate work at Rice University in Houston, Texas and received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Biochemistry. Afterwards, Dr. Tu received her Doctor of Medicine degree from Baylor College of Medicine followed by completion of Internal Medicine Residency at Baylor College of Medicine. She went on to complete Hematology-Oncology Fellowship program at Baylor Colllege of Medicine. Dr. Janet Tu became board certified in Hematology and Medical Oncology upon completion of fellowship and has served as full time faculty at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center since 2009.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Professor, Department of General Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Professor, Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Research Interests
The M.D. Anderson Houston Area Locations began directly enrolling in clinical trials beginning 2012. These centers were designed to help deliver specialized cancer care in a more in a location that may be more convenient for some patients. Dr. Tu has played an active roll in expanding the number of research protocols available at the clinics through direct enrollment and addressing any logistical issues. She has been a co-principal investigator in multiple protocols that have included: the Lung Screening protocol, Adaptimmune screening protocol for autologous T cell candidacy, and the Lone Star protocol investigating frontline immunotherapy in metastatic lung cancer. With her dual-appointmentship in the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, Dr. Tu is dedicated to enrolling patients into available protocols in that department and helping to deliver treatment in a Houston Area Location center when possible. She also works closely with her colleagues at the Texas Medical Center location to co-manage patients together and will refer into the TMC for treatment when medically necessary.
Clinical Interests
Dr. Tu started as a General Oncologist and Hematologist when initially starting at the Sugar Land Houston Area Location in 2009. Although she has seen a variety of malignancies throughout this time, her interests became more focused on lung cancer and the multi-disciplinary approach to fighting cancer. She has spoken about lung cancer in a number of community events, communicating the importance of screening along with novel treatments that continue to evolve in this area. She has inpatient privileges at Methodist Sugar Land and St. Luke's Sugar Land. She is an active participant in the Interdisciplinary Rounds held at the M.D. Anderson Sugar Land Houston Area Location. She also attends the Thoracic Multidisciplinary Conferences held weekly at the M.D. Anderson Medical Center. In 2020, she was formally appointed into the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology in addition to keeping her appointment in the Department of General Oncology.
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 1999 | Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA, Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Medicine |
| 1995 | Rice University, Houston, TX, USA, BA, Biochemistry |
Postgraduate Training
| 2006-2009 | Clinical Fellowship, Hematology/Medical Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX |
| 1999-2002 | Clinical Residency, Categorical Track, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX |
Board Certifications
| 2009 | American Board of Internal Medicine-Medical Oncology |
| 2009 | American Board of Internal Medicine-Hematology |
| 2002 | American Board of Internal Medicine |
Experience & Service
Academic Appointments
Associate Professor, Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2020 - 2023
Associate Professor, Department of General Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2017 - 2023
Assistant Professor, Department of General Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2009 - 2017
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Deputy Department Chair, Department of General Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2019 - Present
Houston Area Location Section Chief, Department of General Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2019 - Present
Section Chief for Medical Oncology, M.D. Anderson Sugar Land Regional Care Center, Sugar Land, TX, 2016 - 2019
Other Appointments/Responsibilities
Chair, St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital Ethics Committee, Sugar Land, TX, 2013 - 2020
Member, CHI St. Luke's Health Hospital Sugar Land Peer Review, Sugar Land, TX, 2012 - 2013
Chair, Tumor Board for MD Anderson Cancer Center/CHI St. Luke's Health Hospital Sugar Land, Sugar Land, TX, 2011 - 2013
Institutional Committee Activities
Medical Practice Superintendent, HAL Integration Task Force - Lung Service Line, 2020 - Present
Member, HAL Research Expansion Initiative, 2019 - Present
Member, Ambulatory Informatics Committee, 2017 - 2019
Member, Medical Practice Committee, 2010 - 2012
Honors & Awards
| 2022 | Top 1% national ranking, M.D. Anderson Physicians Referral Service |
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Wang K, Du R, Myall NJ, Lewis WE, Uy N, Hong L, Skoulidis F, Byers LA, Tsao A, Cascone T, Pozadzides J, Tu J, Negrao MV, Gibbons DL, Park K, Rinsurongkawong W, Lee JJ, Gandara D, Behl D, Shu CA, Riess JW, Baik C, Wakelee HA, Vaporciyan AA, Heymach JV, Zhang J, Le X. Real-World Efficacy and Safety of Amivantamab for EGFR-Mutant NSCLC. J Thorac Oncol 19(3):500-506, 2024. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 38012986.
- Diaz EM, Tu J, Diaz EM, Antonoff MB. Lung Cancer Screening in Head and Neck Cancer Patients: An Untapped Opportunity. Ann Thorac Surg 117(2):305-309, 2024. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 36940898.
- Altan M, Tu J, Milton DR, Yilmaz B, Tian Y, Fossella FV, Mott FE, Blumenschein GR, Stephen B, Karp DD, Meric-Bernstam F, Heymach JV, Naing A. Safety, Tolerability, and Clinical Activity of Selinexor in Combination with Pembrolizumab in Treatment of Metastatic Non-small Cell Lung Cancer. Cancer 129(17):2685-2693, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37129197.
- Jing W, Xu T, Wu L, Lopez PB, Grassberger C, Ellsworth SG, Mohan R, Hobbs BP, Blumenschein GR, Tu J, Altan M, Lee P, Liao Z, Lin SH. Severe Radiation-induced Lymphopenia Attenuates the Benefit of Durvalumab after Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy for NSCLC. JTO Clin Res Rep 3(9):100391, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36089921.
- Kim ST, Chu Y, Misoi M, Suarez-Almazor ME, Tayar JH, Lu H, Buni M, Kramer J, Rodriguez E, Hussain Z, Neelapu SS, Wang J, Shah AY, Tannir NM, Campbell MT, Gibbons DL, Cascone T, Lu C, Blumenschein GR, Altan M, Lim B, Valero V, Loghin ME, Tu J, Westin SN, Naing A, Garcia-Manero G, Abdel-Wahab N, Tawbi HA, Hwu P, Oliva ICG, Davies MA, Patel SP, Zou J, Futreal A, Diab A, Wang L, Nurieva R. Distinct Molecular and Immune Hallmarks of Inflammatory Arthritis Induced by Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors for Cancer Therapy. Nat Commun 13(1):1970, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35413951.
- Rogers JE, Mizrahi JD, Shroff RT, Nelson DA, Tu J, Javle MM, Wolff RA, Pant S. Dose-modified Gemcitabine plus Nab-paclitaxel Front-line in Advanced Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma with Baseline Hyperbilirubinemia. J Gastrointest Oncol 11(1):55-60, 2020. PMID: 32175105.
- Mohammad Z, Mitchell KG, Nelson DB, Robb C, Jreissaty C, Tu J, Vaporciyan AA, Sepesi B, Antonoff MB. Lung Cancer Patient Perceptions of the Value of an Outreach Thoracic Surgical Clinic. Ann Thorac Surg 108(2):358-362, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 30928553.
- Ning MS, Dean MK, Taylor KA, Arzu I, Fleming ND, Mutyala N, Suresh P, Lewis MA, Tu J, Hassid VJ, Joe T, Byler C, Bloom ES, Shah S. Evaluation and Improvement of Bottlenecking in a Multidisciplinary Oncology Clinic: An Electronic Medical Record Intervention. Cureus 11(5):e4583, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31309008.
Other Articles
- Mutayala N, Mutayala R, Lewis M, Tu J, Taylor K, Desai S, Buck S, Reed V, and Shah S Describing the Use of a Cost Effective Online Tool to Qualify the Geographic Location of Patients Served by an Outpatient Oncology Center. Journal of Cancer Prevention and Current Research 6(2), 2016.