Sean W. Fanning

Sean W. Fanning is an Assistant Professor in Cancer Biology at Loyola University Chicago. His research focuses on understanding how small molecules influence nuclear receptor (NR) structures to develop novel anti-cancer therapies, particularly targeting breast cancer drug resistance. He holds a BS in Biochemistry from Virginia Tech, a PhD in Chemistry and Biochemistry from Northern Illinois University, and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Chicago.

Research interests include:

• Structural biology of nuclear receptors
• Design of targeted therapies for ER+ breast cancer
• Mechanisms of drug resistance in cancer cells
• Structure-based drug discovery pipelines

Recent work highlights development of novel SERM compounds, exploration of ESR1 mutations' clinical implications, and preclinical testing of unfolded protein response activators. Publications span high-impact journals like Nature Biotechnology and Molecular Cancer Research. His lab is part of the Loyola Cancer Center, emphasizing translational research to address unmet clinical needs in oncology.