Frederico Netto
Assistant Professor
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Department of Head and Neck Surgery
As an Assistant Professor in the Department of Head and Neck Surgery at MD Anderson Cancer Center, I am establishing a research program to explore how interactions between oral keratinocytes and their tissue microenvironment influence oral carcinogenesis. My goals are to elucidate the mechanisms by which oral premalignant lesions undergo malignant transformation, develop tissue- and saliva-based biomarkers for clinical application, and uncover molecular vulnerabilities that can be targeted to interrupt malignant progression and prevent oral cancer.
A major focus of my current work is to determine how communication among epithelial, immune, and neuronal components influences tumor initiation, progression, and therapeutic response. In particular, I investigate how senescence and senescence escape in oral keratinocytes contribute to oral carcinogenesis and how nerve-derived signals regulate senescence-associated programs and modulate the immune-mediated recognition and clearance of senescent cells. These processes may influence the development of oral premalignant lesions and their progression to cancer. To address these questions, I integrate patient-derived specimens and mechanistic experimental models with histopathologic analysis, spatial molecular profiling, single-cell transcriptomics, and bulk-tissue multi-omics.
My research also incorporates computational and in silico approaches, including integrative analyses of large-scale cancer datasets and artificial intelligence-based analysis of histopathology images. These approaches connect molecular programs with tissue morphology and support the development of clinically relevant prognostic and predictive biomarkers. Overall, my research bridges mechanistic cancer biology, molecular pathology, and multi-omic data analysis to expand our understanding of oral carcinogenesis and improve oral cancer prevention and management.
Education & Training
PhD, AC Camargo Cancer Center, 2015