Gina Lee, UCI assistant professor of microbiology & molecular genetics, is one of 10 university researchers to receive a $100,000 grant from the Mary Kay Ash Foundation in recognition of her innovative research seeking cures for cancers affecting women. UCI School of Medicine

Gina Lee, UCI assistant professor of microbiology & molecular genetics, is one of 10 researchers to receive a $100,000 grant from the Mary Kay Ash Foundation for their innovative work in seeking cures for cancers affecting women. Lee’s team studies lymphangioleiomyomatosis, a rare tumor syndrome causing uncontrolled cell growth in the kidneys and lungs that occurs during childbearing age, when estrogen levels are elevated. The grant will support investigation into how estrogen stimulates the production of tumor-promoting proteins in LAM cells. “The Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCI has several strong research programs in women’s cancer. Director Richard Van Etten has done an amazing job of bringing scientists together, and I am thankful that he nominated me for this funding,” Lee said. “This grant will help my group boldly pursue our work to advance treatment of LAM tumors, offering new therapeutic opportunities for patients and providing insights into therapies for other women’s cancers.”