Research Newsletter - August 2026

Trisha Wise-Draper, MD, PhD, recently began her new role as director of the IU School of Medicine Division of Hematology/Oncology. She’s also the cancer center’s inaugural deputy director and interim associate director of clinical research.

Before joining IU, she was a professor of medicine at the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center, section head of medical oncology, head and neck disease group leader, co-leader of the Head and Neck Experimental Advancement Laboratory (HEAL), and deputy director of the Office of Clinical Research. As a physician-scientist, she specializes in the care of patients with head and neck cancers and in experimental therapeutics.

Her research focuses on immunotherapy and precision oncology in head and neck cancer. Her work contributed to the design and execution of pivotal trials in this area, influenced the national standard of care, and built a collaborative translational research infrastructure that united a variety of teams for scientific excellence.

Nationally, she is the medical oncology vice chair for the NRG Oncology Head and Neck Cancer Committee and serves on the NCI Head and Neck Steering Committee. She is also senior editor of Clinical Cancer Research and section editor of JAHNS.

Her research funding portfolio includes NIH/NCI, American Cancer Society, Department of Defense, and industry support, with some grants exceeding $10 million. She has authored or co-authored more than 120 peer-reviewed publications.

In addition, she’s the Robert Wallace Miller Chair in Oncology, affectionately known as the “Robbie Chair.” The late V. Richard "Dick" Miller, a former Indiana senator, and his wife, Jane Miller, made the donation in honor of their son, Robert "Robbie" Wallace Miller, who succumbed to a rare form of cancer in 1976 at the age of 11. The Millers created the Robbie Chair at IU in 1995 and later established a second Robbie Chair at the Purdue Institute for Cancer Research in 2008.

The IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center again proudly participated in the Indiana Black Expo’s Summer Celebration health fair over four days in July.

The Office of Community Outreach and Engagement (OCOE) and End Lung Cancer Now (ELCN) joined to coordinate the cancer center’s presence, bringing together volunteer staff, researchers, students, and team members from across departments and disciplines. Throughout the event, volunteers engaged fairgoers in conversations about the cancer center’s mission to reduce Indiana’s cancer burden through education on cancer prevention and screening, tobacco control, lung cancer awareness, and clinical trials.

In addition to sharing health information, OCOE offered interactive activities designed to create meaningful connections with community members. Returning for a second year, the Cancer Care Community Quilt Project invited participants to write a message of hope, encouragement, or the name of someone who inspired them on a quilt square matching the color associated with the type of cancer they identified with as a survivor, caregiver, loved one, or supporter. The completed quilt squares will be given to the women of the Indiana Women’s Prison, who will transform them into beautiful quilts to be displayed or presented to cancer survivors at community events throughout Indiana.

New this year, The Soundtrack of Hope, invited participants to share the song and artist that encouraged them — or continues to encourage them — through their cancer journey. The submitted songs were compiled into a community playlist and shared with participants who provided their contact information. Representing a wide range of backgrounds and cancer experiences, the playlist serves as a lasting collection of hope, comfort and encouragement — united through the power of music.

“These engagement activities sparked meaningful conversations that often became moments of connection, reflection, and support at the cancer center’s booth,” Tanya J. Street, community partners liaison, said. “They served as a reminder that community engagement extends beyond sharing health information. It is also about creating experiences that foster compassion, encourage cancer survivors and caregivers at every stage of their journey, and inspire others to better understand the experiences of those around them.”

Those interested in volunteering or service-learning opportunities, or in helping engage communities at future health fairs and outreach events, should contact Tanya J. Street, at 317-278-6151 or taejohns@iu.edu.

End Lung Cancer Now brought together survivors, caregivers, advocates, healthcare professionals, researchers, and community partners to recognize World Lung Cancer Day on July 29.

The event included remarks from Lee McHenry, MD, an IU gastroenterologist, who shared his journey as a caregiver, and Jim Pantelas, a veteran and 21-year lung cancer survivor from Michigan. For the third year, the White Ribbon Project co-founder Heidi Onda traveled from Colorado to participate.

Attendees connected with organizations from across Indiana during a community resource fair and participated in activities, including signing white ribbons, creating patches for the Patches of Hope community quilt, writing cards for newly diagnosed patients, painting a special artwork from Lilly Oncology on Canvas, and capturing memories with family and friends at a photo booth.

Special thanks go to the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, and Indiana Association of Area Agencies on Aging for their generous support of this year’s World Lung Cancer Day activities.

See event photos

Each year, 100 Voices of Hope donors fund bold “hunches” from IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center experts — fresh ideas to better treat, diagnose and prevent metastatic breast cancer.  The next opportunity to pitch “hunches” for funding will be in early November. Projects can be collaborative but multiple PIs are not required. Preliminary data isn’t required; this is the place to pursue your wild and crazy ideas. Projects should be achievable in 12-18 months. Pitch proposal submissions must include:

• One page (max) scientific summary of the project
• One paragraph summary in lay language (this should not read like the scientific summary)
• A brief budget request. Budget calculations can include salary support for lab personnel but may not include PI salary support. A detailed budget is not required at this stage, just the total cost.

The deadline for “hunch” pitch proposals is Oct. 2. For additional information, contact Hari Nakshatri, PhD, hnakshat@iu.edu, or Kathy Miller, MD, kathmill@iu.edu.