Scott W. Lowe is the Chair of the Cancer Biology and Genetics Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York City. He is also Chair of the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center and an Investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Dr. Lowe received a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he worked for several years studying the molecular basis of hypercholesterolemia. He performed his graduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology under the supervision of Dr. H. Earl Ruley, and received his Ph.D. for research on the role of the p53 tumor suppressor in oncogenic transformation, apoptosis, and chemosensitivity. After a brief postdoctoral position in the MIT Center for Cancer Research with Drs. David Housman and Tyler Jacks, Dr. Lowe initiated independent research at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory as a Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Fellow and then as a member of the faculty. Dr. Lowe’s research has made important contributions to our understanding of the p53 tumor suppressor network, as well as the processes of multi-step carcinogenesis, cellular senescence, and tumor-cell drug resistance. Current research is based on the premise that the path of cancer evolution dictates a tumor’s subsequent response to therapy and creates unique vulnerabilities that represent therapeutic opportunities. Hence, the laboratory applies mouse models, RNA interference and cancer genomics in a coordinated effort to identify cancer drivers and dependencies that will be useful therapeutic targets relevant to specific cancer genotypes. Dr. Lowe’s work has been recognized by several awards, including a Sydney Kimmel Foundation Scholar Award, a Rita Allen Foundation Scholar Award, the AACR Outstanding Investigator Award, the Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research, the Kunio Yagi Medal, and the Alfred G. Knudsen Award. He also has been inducted as a Fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.