Douglas Yee, MD

Director
Yee

United States

Websites
Experts@Minnesota Profile
PubMed article list

Contact Dr. Yee: yeexx006@umn.edu

I am a medical oncologist with a specialty in breast cancer. My laboratory has been interested in the regulation of cancer cells by insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and insulin. I also maintain an active clinical practice in the medical management of breast cancer. As part of my clinical care, I serve as the site principal investigator on several clinical trials that employ experimental therapies targeted against IGF receptors and the PI3K pathway. I am chair of the Agent Selection Committee of I-SPY2, and I also serve on the Executive Committee of this trial designed to validate investigational therapies in the neoadjuvant treatment of breast cancer. I have been the director of the Masonic Cancer Center since 2007. I have maintained these clinical, translational, and research activities to best identify strategies for improved outcomes in cancer.

Expertise

  • Breast Cancer

Awards & Recognition

  • Mpls.St. Paul Magazine "Top Doctor" (2012-2015)
  • "Best Doctors for Women," Minnesota Monthly Magazine (2011, 2014)
  • Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences (1990)

Professional Associations

  • Director, Masonic Cancer Center (2007-present)
  • Tickle Family Land Grant Chair in Breast Cancer Research (1999-2009)
  • John H. Kersey Chair in Cancer Research (2008-present)
  • Komen for the Cure Scientific Advisory Council (2010)

Education

Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology (Joint Appointment), Division of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation
Director, Masonic Cancer Center (MCC)
Faculty, Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB) Ph.D. Graduate Program
Faculty, MS and PhD Programs in Pharmacology
Preceptor, Medical Scientist Training Program (Combined MD/PhD Training Program)

Medical Oncologist
Medical School, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
Internal Medicine Residency, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Oncology Fellowship, National Cancer Institute, Medicine Branch, Bethesda, MD

Expand all

Research

Research Summary/Interests

Growth regulation of breast cancer
Our laboratory is interested in understanding the contribution of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) action to the breast cancer malignant phenotype. We have shown that IGF-I can stimulate cell growth, enhance survival, and stimulate motility and adhesion. Activation of specific substrates, insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) and IRS-2 are associated with either cell proliferation or cell motility. A major focus of the laboratory is to elucidate the signals downstream of these two adaptor proteins that account for the observed phenotype. In breast cancer, development of therapeutics designed to target specific growth regulatory molecules has proven to be remarkably successful in the clinic. Since the IGFs regulate several important breast cancer phenotypes, the second focus of the laboratory is to develop anti-IGF strategies that have potential as cancer therapeutics. Our long-term goal is to improve breast cancer treatment by understanding and targeting the key components of the IGF system.

Clinical

Clinics

Breast Center

Board Certifications

  • Internal Medicine
  • Medical Oncology

Clinical Interests

Breast cancer