About
Diana Ivankovic has been hired by the HealthCare Genetics Ph.D. program to revamp and expand collaborative research in the School of Nursing. For the past thirty years she has been a lecturer in the Summer Scholar Program at Clemson University, as well as the director of the Center for Cancer Research (CCR) and Professor at Anderson University in Anderson, SC. Diana is an active recruiter of underrepresented and minority students. She is an active collaborator with the Cancer Association of Anderson, MUSC, the GGC, PRISMA, and researchers in several departments at Clemson University. She is the co-author of the 3'' edition of Principles of Cell Biology, a textbook published with Dr. George Plopper in the spring of 2020. She is a cancer survivor, the founder of the Anderson University CCR and has been teaching biology, microbiology, cell biology and genetics since 2004. Dr. lvankovic has received several teaching and leadership awards. Diana actively writes grant proposal and publishes in scientific journals.
For more information, see her department profile.
How their research is transforming health care
Breast cancer is one of the most common causes of death in women and the current therapeutic protocols often cause detrimental side effects. In order to identify the best treatment approach for different breast cancer types, Diana proposes to characterize the metabolic profile of various cancer cell lines: primary versus metastatic, hormonal positive versus triple negative. For several decades she has assessed the efficacy of natural compounds on a variety of malignant cell lines, identifying some candidate extracts that show remarkable potential. Dr. lvankovic strives to evaluate potential targeted pathways for treatment in different types of breast cancers, test candidate compounds that would present minimal side effects, and assess their efficacy as compared to a traditional chemotherapeutic agent; the results of her study may have a significant translational potential for thousands of patients facing chemotherapy.
Health Research Expertise Keywords
Faculty Scholar, Translational, metastatic breast cancer, primary breast cancer, metabolic profile, targeted pathways
