Rick A. Finch, PHD, DABT
Department of Comparative Medicine, Division of Division of Discovery Science
About Dr. Rick A. Finch
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Professor, Department of Comparative Medicine and Research, Division of Discovery Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Professor, Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Associate Member, Department of Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Houston, Texas
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 1995 | Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, US, Ph.D. in Pharmacology |
| 1980 | University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, US, B.S. in Chemistry/Biology |
Postgraduate Training
| 1996-2000 | Postdoctoral Fellow, Pharmacology/Chemotherapy, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut |
Licenses & Certifications
| 2011 | Diplomate, American Board of Toxicology |
Experience & Service
Faculty Academic Appointments
Associate Professor, Department of Comparative Medicine, Department of Comparative Medicine, Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX, 2009 - 2018
Other Professional Positions
Consultantship, Cancer Models, Scientific Advisory Board, OncoTEX, Austin, TX, 2019 - 2024
Associate Director, Oncology, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc, The Woodlands, TX, 2007 - 2009
Principal Scientist, Oncology, Lexicon Genetics, Inc, The Woodlands, TX, 2004 - 2007
Senior Scientist, Oncology, Lexicon Genetics, Inc, The Woodlands, TX, 2002 - 2004
Scientist, Oncology, Lexicon Genetics, Inc, The Woodlands, TX, 2000 - 2002
Associate Research Scientist, Pharmacology/Chemotherapy, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, 1998 - 2000
Postdoctoral Fellow, Pharmacology/Chemotherapy, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, 1996 - 1998
Graduate Student, Pharmacology/Cell Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 1990 - 1995
Research Associate, Pharmacology/Chemotherapy, ICN Nucleic Acid Research Institute, Costa Mesa, CA, 1985 - 1990
Senior Research Technologist, In vivo modeling, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, 1984 - 1985
Research Technologist, In vivo modeling, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, 1980 - 1984
Honors & Awards
| 2023 | Diplomate, American Board of Toxicology |
| 2001 | Special Fellowship, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society |
| 1998 | National Research Service Award, National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
| 1994 | Graduate Student Symposium Award, Baylor College of Medicine |
| 1994 | Harris Busch Award in Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Department of Pharmacology, Baylor College of Medicine |
Professional Memberships
Selected Presentations & Talks
Formal Peers
- 2012. Changing Patients Lives, Translational Research in the Lone Star State. Invited. Austin, TX, US.
Grant & Contract Support
| Date: | 2021 - 2026 |
| Title: | A Preclinical Development Core for Large Molecule Therapeutics |
| Funding Source: | Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| Role: | Co-I |
| ID: | RP2101119 |
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Kalluri, VS, Smaglo, BG, Mahadevan, KK, Kirtley, ML, McAndrews, KM, Mendt Vilchez, MC, Yang, S, Maldonado, AS, Sugimoto, H, Salvatierra De Aranguren, M, Solis Soto, LM, Haymaker, CL, Finch, RA, Gagea Iurascu, M, Fluty, AC, Ludtke, SJ, Lee, JJ, Jain, A, Varadhachary, GR, Shroff, R, Maitra, A, Shpall, E, Pant, S, Kalluri, R. Engineered exosomes with KrasG12D specific siRNA in pancreatic cancer. Nature communications 16(1), 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 41027940.
- Toh, Y, Wu, L, Tu, J, Liang, ZD, Aldana, AM, Wen, JJ, Li, L, Pan, S, Rowe, JH, Hensel, ME, Hodo, CL, Finch, RA, Carmon, K, Liu, QJ. Anti-tumor activity of camptothecin analog conjugate of an RSPO4-based peptibody targeting LGR4/5/6 in preclinical models of colorectal cancer. British journal of cancer 133(8):1218-1228, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 40825849.
- He G, Thiabaud GD, Shelton KA, Segura LJ, Arambula JF, Sessler JL, Finch RA, Siddik ZH. Profiling the Preclinical Pharmacokinetics and Biodistribution of a Platinum(IV)-Based Oxaliplatin Prodrug OxaliTEX and Their Significance to Antitumor Response. Mol. Pharmaceutics, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- Thiabaud, G, He, G, Sen, S, Shelton, K, Baze, W, Segura, L, Alaniz, J, MacIas, RM, Lyness, G, Watts, AB, Kim, HM, Lee, H, Cho, MY, Hong, KS, Finch, RA, Siddik, ZH, Arambula, JF, Sessler, JL. Oxaliplatin Pt(IV) prodrugs conjugated to gadoliniumtexaphyrin as potential antitumor agents. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 117(13):7021-7029, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32179677.
- Penketh PG, Finch RA, Saura R, Baumann RP, Ratner ES, Shyam K. pH-dependent general base catalyzed activation rather than isocyanate liberation may explain the superior anticancer efficacy of laromustine compared to related 1,2-bis(methylsulfonyl)-1-(2-chloroethyl)hydrazine prodrugs. Chem Biol Drug Des:1-13, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28636806.
- Valdes S, Naquib YW, Finch RA, Baze WB, Jolly CA, Cui Z. Preclinical evaluation of the short-term toxicity of 4-(N)-docosahexaaenoyl 2’,2’-difluorodeoxycytidine (DHA-dFdC). J Pharmacol Exp Therapeutics 34:1224-1232, 2017. e-Pub 2017.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified March 10, 2026