Andrea Espejo Freire

Andrea Espejo Freire, MD serves as Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Her clinical expertise focuses on sarcomas and rare tumors, with active research in translational oncology and clinical trials for desmoid tumors, gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), and leiomyosarcoma.

Dr. Espejo Freire's research centers on multiomic characterization of sarcoma biology, particularly DNA damage response pathways, tumor immunology, and mechanisms of therapy resistance. Her work integrates genomic, transcriptomic, and clinical data to identify biomarkers for treatment selection and develop novel therapeutic strategies for rare malignancies. Key methodologies include national database analyses, circulating tumor DNA monitoring, and comparative effectiveness studies of systemic therapies.

Analysis of her 2021-2025 publications reveals three dominant research trajectories: (1) molecular subtyping of sarcomas by age group and anatomical origin, (2) optimization of targeted therapies (particularly sorafenib) for desmoid tumors, and (3) exploration of immunotherapy resistance mechanisms in leiomyosarcoma. Her work consistently bridges laboratory findings with clinical applications through retrospective cohort studies and single-institution case series.