Michelle Martin-Pozo, PhD, is the Program Director for the Center for Drug Safety and Immunology (CDSI) in the Division of Infectious Disease at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. In this role, Dr. Martin-Pozo provides management and direction of CDSI’s research and clinical trial initiatives.
She completed her PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology at Baylor College of Medicine, and a postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Biology at Vanderbilt. Her research focused on the role of matrix metalloproteinases in breast cancer metastasis, along with the development and validation of optical and MRI-based imaging modalities in animal models to image early metastatic events and response to therapy in the liver, lung and brain.
Prior to her role in CDSI, Dr. Martin-Pozo served as the Administrative Director for Partnerships, Education, and Operations at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), where she provided management and oversight of strategic partnerships, operations, and research and educations priorities for VICC. Additionally, she has served as the Director of Research Programs, responsible for strategy development and priority-setting, as well as financial management and strategic partnerships, for Susan G. Komen, where she provided direction and implementation of a Research Program that awarded and managed over $27 million in grants annually to institutions around the world.