Rate My Professor Nilofer Azad

Dr. Nilofer S. Azad is a Professor of Oncology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine within the field of Medicine. She holds key leadership positions including Associate Cancer Center Director for Clinical Research, Co-Leader of the Cancer Genetics and Epigenetics Program, Co-Director of the Developmental Therapeutics Clinical Research Program, and Co-Director of the Colorectal Cancer Research Center of Excellence at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center. Azad earned her MD from Baylor College of Medicine in 2001, completed her internal medicine residency there in 2004, and her fellowship in oncology and hematology at the National Cancer Institute in 2008, where she served as chief fellow with a focus on early phase drug development. She joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2008 and directs the Developmental Therapeutics Clinical Trials Program.

Azad's research specializations encompass gastrointestinal cancers such as colorectal, pancreaticobiliary, and cholangiocarcinoma, with academic interests in epigenetic therapies combined with chemotherapy and immunotherapy, molecularly targeted drugs, and novel drug combinations for advanced cancers. As an active clinical trialist, she leads multiple trials translating laboratory findings into patient treatments. Her career includes major awards and honors such as numerous grants from the National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society, American Society of Clinical Research, Breakthrough Cancer Foundation, Lustgarten Foundation, and National Comprehensive Cancer Network. She served as Principal Investigator for Johns Hopkins on the AACR Stand Up 2 Cancer Colorectal Cancer Dream Team, led GI cancer initiatives on the Stand Up 2 Cancer Epigenetics Dream Team, and holds roles on the NCI Colon Cancer Task Force, as Co-Chair of the Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation Scientific and Medical Advisory Board, and Presidential appointee to the National Cancer Advisory Board. Key publications include Entinostat in combination with nivolumab in metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: a phase 2 clinical trial (Nature Communications, 2024), A phase II study of guadecitabine combined with irinotecan vs regorafenib or TAS-102 in irinotecan-refractory metastatic colorectal cancer patients (International Journal of Cancer, 2024), Multicenter randomized phase II trial of atezolizumab with or without cobimetinib in biliary tract cancers (Journal of Clinical Investigation, 2021), and A study of using epigenetic modulators to enhance response to pembrolizumab in microsatellite stable advanced colorectal cancer (Clinical Epigenetics, 2023). Her work has significantly influenced clinical oncology through innovative trials and national leadership in GI cancer research.