Victor O’Halloran

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Hello, I’m Victor O’Halloran and I’m working as a summer intern for the Oncofertility Consortium.  My project this summer has been to research and summarize various religious perspectives and thinking on fertility, infertility and medical intervention.  I hope that this preliminary reasearch can be used to create a context in which to think about and discuss religious responses to Oncofertility as well as some of the ways patients of various faiths might approach their own treatment. The study includes perspectives from Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Evangelical Christianity, Protestantism, Hinduism, and Buddhism.  I am an undergraduate at Eugene Lang College of New School University in Manhattan majoring in Religious Studies.

Min Xu, PhD

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My name is Min Xu and I am a research assistant professor in the Oncofertility Consortium. I received my M.D. and Ph.D. in China, and more specifically, I was working in a clinical IVF lab for 5 years. During that time I helped many men bank their sperm for their future family plans, however, I felt quite guilty when I had to keep telling women “I am sorry that there is no way to preserve your eggs.”

“Why there is no option for women?”
“What can I do about this?”

These two questions were so dominant in my mind, and they eventually drove me to join Dr. Woodruff and Dr. Shea’s collaboration lab, where we are aiming to look at these questions. And more importantly, answer them.

As usual in these modern days, most of basic science starts on the animal models. By using the mouse as a model, I proved that immature follicles can be grown in the three-dimensional biomatrix system, alginate, to produce healthy eggs, and eventually result in life birth. I am now working on optimizing and translating this novel technique to human follicle in vitro development.

Sarah Kieswetter

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Hi! I’m Sarah Kiesewetter, one of the Technologists of the lab. I finished my Bachelor’s of Science (Animal Science) at the University of Illinois in 2006, and have been with the Woodruff lab ever since. I started out working with all of the animal systems in our lab, but with the addition of a few new technologists I have made the transition to the head of education and outreach. I get the opportunity to work with all of the incoming researchers to our lab, as well as undergraduates, high schoolers, high school teachers, and anyone else who is interested in the research of the Woodruff lab! I’ve been lucky enough to be a teacher for the Oncofertility Saturday Academy for all 3 years that it has been running, and have completely enjoyed working with the students and watching how the program grows and changes each year. Other activities for me include all of the paperwork involved in actually performing research with animals, working with the Oncofertility Consortium to freeze ovarian tissue for cancer patients, helping others with their projects (they call us a “collaboratory” for a reason!), and I also get to perform a few projects of my own on the side. One study that Jen Jozefik and I are currently wrapping up deals with the process of ovulating an ovarian follicle in our culture system and showing how it turns into a corpus luteum (a progesterone-producing unit that, in vivo, helps maintain the hospitable environment of the uterus until an embryo implants). The lab is a very busy place this summer, but I’m always willing to chat about what we do – so check in and see what’s going on!

SK

Dr. Clarisa Gracia, an assistant professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, was recently pictured on the cover of Philadelphia Magazine and listed as one of the top doctors under 40 in Philadelphia, thanks to her work in Oncofertility. See her slide on the magazine’s Web site here.

Dr. Clarisa Gracia, featured on the cover (lower-center) of the magazine, was voted one of the top doctors under 40 in the area for her work in Oncofertility.

Dr. Gracia’s primary area of interest is in Oncofertility and reproductive aging. She has a clinical practice that focuses on Oncofertility. She sees cancer patients from the newly diagnosed to the survivors and counsels them on fertility preservation. She also gives her patients treatment for long-term reproductive and endocrine complications that are associated with cancer treatments.

Dr. Gracia is involved in several research projects, including investigations into the effects that cancer therapies have on reproduction, new ways of preserving fertility in cancer patients and the way different hormones change during the stages leading to menopause. 

Dr. Gracia said she was also interviewed by CN8 with one of her breast cancer patients during last year’s Cancer Week and that Star Magazine interviewed her about Christina Applegate’s breast cancer diagnosis. She also said she was featured in Cure Magazine in which she talked about the legal issues surrounding Oncofertility.

Huge Galdones, PhD

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I’m a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and, if I’m not mistaken, the newest member of the Woodruff Laboratory. Originally from Montreal (Quebec, Canada), I received my B.Sc. (Physiology) and Ph.D. (Pharmacology and Therapeutics) from McGill University. With a background in teratology (birth defects research) and developmental biology, I have much to learn about women’s health and fertility. However, while I have yet to reach the two-month mark in the lab, I feel like I’ve hit the ground running. My work will ultimately examine how (1) aberrant exposure of specific environmental toxicants and (2) experimental models of polycystic ovarian syndrome disrupt fertility. Through this blog, I hope to share my interests with the you and look forward to hearing (or rather reading) what’s on your mind!