Lisa Arendt

Lisa Arendt is an Associate Professor in the Department of Comparative Biosciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine. Her research focuses on understanding how obesity influences breast cancer development and progression, particularly in postmenopausal women. She investigates the role of inflammation, adipose tissue changes, and tumor microenvironment dynamics in promoting aggressive tumor behaviors.

Education:

• B.S. in Genetics, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1996)
• D.V.M., School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison (2002)
• Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison (2007)
• Postdoctoral Fellowship in Cancer Biology, Tufts University (2014)

Research Interests: Obesity's impact on breast cancer risk, mammary gland biology, tumor microenvironment interactions, inflammation-driven carcinogenesis, and stromal-epithelial cross-talk. Her lab employs mouse models, xenograft systems, and 3D cell culture to study mechanisms linking obesity to aggressive tumor phenotypes, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance.

Labs/Teams: The Arendt Lab at UW-Madison explores how adipose tissue changes under obesity drive tumor formation and progression. Key areas include:

• Obesity-induced inflammation and fibrosis in mammary tissue
• Role of macrophages and stromal cells in tumor angiogenesis
• Hormonal interactions (e.g., estrogen, aromatase) in postmenopausal breast cancer