Julie K. Schwarz, MD, PhD

I am a physician-scientist who sees and treats women with locally advanced cervical cancer.  At Washington University, we maintain one of the largest repositories of tissue samples from patients with cervical cancer treated with chemoradiation. This repository includes tumor biopsies and blood samples collected from patients before and during treatment.  Tissue samples are collected and corresponding clinical outcome data from the same patient are recorded, including the results of pre and post-treatment imaging.  The goal of this tissue repository is to use patient materials, imaging results and clinical outcome data to identify and to validate predictive biomarkers that can be used in the clinic to improve outcomes for our patients. As a research scientist, I maintain my own R01 funded research laboratory.  In the laboratory, we use molecular biology, genetic engineering and small animal imaging to answer fundamental questions about tumor biology and the biology that drives tumor appearance on diagnostic images (i.e., FDG-PET and MRI).

Education

• BS, Biology: Duke University, Durham, NC (1995)
• MD/PhD, Cell and Molecular Biology: Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO (2004)
• Internship, Internal Medicine: Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, MO (2005)
• Residency, Radiation Oncology: Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, MO (2009)