Meet the new KACF Fellow – Madalyn G. Neuwirth

Dr. Madalyn Neuwirth is the 2020 – 2021 KACF Surgical Fellow and is completing her second year as a Complex General Surgical Oncology Fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center with plans to pursue an academic surgical oncology career in treating soft tissue sarcoma patients. She is currently involved in clinical outcomes research for soft tissue sarcomas of the extremity, trunk and retroperitoneum. Specifically, she is investigating prognostic factors for local recurrence of extremity and trunk soft tissue sarcomas. One of the hallmarks of soft tissue sarcomas is the locally aggressive nature of some specific subtypes. These tumors tend to recur in the same sites and can be managed with local treatment including surgical removal and radiation. Interestingly, some features of the primary tumor and the recurrent tumors, including histologic subtype, size and rate of growth, may help predict disease free interval length and survival following resection.

Additionally, she is interested in exploring the role of the tissue microenvironment where these soft tissue sarcomas develop. White adipose tissue inflammation has been identified as a prognostic factor in some aggressive cancer types. As such, when sarcomas arise from adipose and other tissue of mesenchymal origin, the surrounding soft tissue environment and degree of inflammation may provide additional insight as to how these tumors develop and how they will behave.