Alex Kentsis

Dr. Alex Kentsis is an Associate Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine's Graduate School of Medical Sciences and serves as Director of Memorial Sloan Kettering's Tow Center for Developmental Oncology. As a physician-scientist, he maintains dual appointments at Sloan Kettering Institute's Molecular Pharmacology Program and MSK Kids' Department of Pediatrics, leading research on childhood and young adult cancers including leukemias, brain tumors, and sarcomas.

His research focuses on three interconnected domains:

• Genomic plasticity and somatic DNA transposases in developmental cancers
• Epigenetic signaling mechanisms and therapeutic targeting in leukemias/solid tumors
• High-accuracy mass spectrometry for cancer proteome analysis and drug discovery

Dr. Kentsis utilizes interdisciplinary approaches combining functional genomics, protein engineering, computational modeling, and patient-derived mouse models to develop precision therapies. His work has revealed novel mechanisms of therapy resistance, including prohibitin-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction in Wilms tumor and MYB-CBP/P300 complex dysregulation in leukemia.

His publications demonstrate consistent focus on molecular oncology themes: DNA transposition mechanisms in cancer development (35%), epigenetic therapeutic targeting (30%), proteomic biomarker discovery (20%), and leukemia pathogenesis (15%). Recent work emphasizes translational applications like EZH2 inhibitor combinations and peptidomimetic MYB antagonists.

Notable scientific honors include:

• Pershing Square Sohn Prize & Rita Allen Scholar Award for innovative cancer research
• Damon Runyon Clinical Investigator and Burroughs Wellcome Career Awards
• Election to American Society for Clinical Investigation
• Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Scholar and ASH Scholar Awards
• St. Baldrick's Innovation Award for pediatric oncology

He leads the Kentsis Research Group at Sloan Kettering Institute, comprising physicians and scientists developing biologics targeting cancer proteomes. The lab maintains active collaborations with Children's Oncology Group and Memorial Sloan Kettering's drug development core.