About

Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD, is the Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago. She is a member of the Committee on Cancer Biology, the Committee on Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacogenomics, and the Committee on Genetics, Genomics and Systems Biology. Her clinical interests include breast cancer, particularly breast cancer associated with pregnancy, breast cancer in young women, hereditary cancer syndromes, inflammatory breast cancer, and women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. She is involved in clinical trials and cancer risk and prevention, with a focus on hereditary cancers. Dr. Olopade's educational background includes a M.B.B.S. from the University of Ibadan with distinctions in Pathology and Pediatrics, internships in Medicine, Surgery, and Pediatrics at University College Hospital in Nigeria, and postgraduate training in Hematology/Oncology through a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Chicago. Her professional experience encompasses roles such as Medical Officer at the Nigerian Navy Hospital, Residency and Chief Residency in Internal Medicine at Cook County Hospital. Her research has contributed to understanding benign breast disease and breast cancer risk in African women, validation of risk calculators, racial and gene expression signatures in breast cancer outcomes, and disparities in telemedicine utilization among breast cancer patients. Dr. Olopade has received numerous awards, including the Ron Ross Award, the Mendal Medal Award from Villanova University, the NAPA Lifetime Achievement Award, the ASCO Humanitarian Award, and the Chicago Women’s International Achievement Award, among others.

Research topics

• Internal medicine
• Medicine
• Family medicine
• Gynecology
• Genetics
• Biology
• Oncology

Selected publications

• Menopausal hormone therapy and the risk of breast cancer in women with a pathogenic variant in <i>BRCA1</i> or <i>BRCA2</i>

  JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2025-12-13 · 2 citations

  article

  BACKGROUND: Women with a pathogenic variant in BRCA1 or BRCA2 are at high risk of developing ovarian cancer, and it is often recommended that they undergo bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy at an early age, resulting in surgical menopause. Menopausal hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is an effective way to mitigate the adverse outcomes of early menopause; however, the safety of menopausal HRT on breast cancer risk in this population has not been established. METHODS: We conducted a prospective matched analysis of HRT use following menopause and breast cancer risk in BRCA carriers. Women who initiated HRT were matched one-to-one with women who had not initiated menopausal HRT by gene, year of birth, and age at menopause, resulting in 676 matched pairs. Menopausal HRT use collected by questionnaire included formulation and mode of administration. RESULTS: After a mean of 5.6 years, there were 87 (12.9%) incident breast cancer cases in the 676 exposed women and 128 (18.9%) cases in the 676 unexposed women (P = .002). Compared with unexposed matched control individuals, women who used estrogen alone experienced a statistically significantly decreased risk of breast cancer (hazard ratio = 0.37, 95% CI = 0.24 to 0.57). No protective or adverse effect was associated with the use of estrogen plus progestogen (hazard ratio = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.54 to 1.63). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest no substantial increase in the risk of breast cancer in BRCA carriers with the use of HRT and that estrogen alone might be protective.

  PublisherDOI

• FGD3 mediates lytic cell death, enhancing efficacy and immunogenicity of chemotherapy agents in breast cancer

  Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research · 2025-11-12 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Although anticancer therapies inducing necrosis, necroptosis and pyroptosis trigger cell swelling, plasma membrane rupture (PMR) and release of damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), potentially facilitating antitumor immunity, little was known of proteins and mechanisms controlling the life-death decision of whether swollen and stressed cancer cells enter PMR and undergo lytic cell death. METHODS: We conducted a genome-wide CRISPR screen with selection against a lytic cell death inducer, complemented by studies using breast cancer cells in 2D culture, patient-derived organoids and orthotopic mouse xenografts. The effect of FGD3 on immunogenicity was explored by immunoblotting, immunofluorescence staining and NK-cell mediated cytotoxicity assays. The correlation between the level of FGD3 expression and patient prognosis and response to chemotherapy was assessed by analysis of patient databases. RESULTS: We identified FGD3 as a key mediator, coupling cell swelling to PMR and lytic cell death induced by emerging and current breast cancer therapies, including ErSO, aprepitant, doxorubicin and epirubicin. FGD3 coupled cell swelling to PMR across the spectrum of immunogenic lytic cell death pathways, including necrosis, necroptosis and pyroptosis. Mechanistically, FGD3 facilitated PMR by controlling actin reorganization via the Cdc42-ARP2/3 axis. Notably, elevated FGD3 increased release of DAMPs, strongly enhanced exposure of immunogenic cell surface calreticulin and increased sensitivity of cancer cells to NK cell-mediated lysis. Supporting clinical relevance, high FGD3 expression strongly correlated with improved relapse-free survival in breast cancer patients after chemotherapy and this correlation was stronger than was seen for NINJ1 and other proteins associated with lytic cell death. CONCLUSION: FGD3 is a key mediator of chemotherapy-induced plasma membrane rupture and lytic cell death. It is also a useful biomarker for identifying breast cancer patients most likely to benefit from lytic cell death-inducing immunogenic anticancer therapies.

  PublisherDOI

• Arterial input function derived using the Xiphoid process as a reference tissue for breast DCE-MRI

  Proceedings on CD-ROM - International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. Scientific Meeting and Exhibition/Proceedings of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Scientific Meeting and Exhibition · 2025-09-16

  article

  Motivation: Solve the problem of accurately measuring the arterial-input-function (AIF) for breast DCE-MRI at 3T. Goal(s): To derive AIF from Xiphoid-process and compare with AIFs measured from the aorta with low and high dose (15% and 85% of standard-dose) DCE-MRI. Approach: DCE-MRI were acquired at 3T. Ktrans and ve for Xiphoid-process were measured with low-dose AIF using standard Tofts model, then used to derive AIF for high dose, and compared with high dose AIFs. Results: AIF derived using the Xiphoid-process has significantly higher peak than that measured from the aorta with a high dose, and can be used for quantitative analysis of breast DCE-MRI. Impact: The AIF derived using the Xiphoid-process as a reference tissue has significantly higher peak than that measured at descending aorta for regular-dose breast DCE-MRI, and can be used to quantitatively analyze breast DCE-MRI for diagnosis of breast cancer.

  PublisherDOI

• Risk Factors For Endometrial Cancer Among Women With A BRCA1 Or BRCA2 Mutation

  International Journal of Gynecological Cancer · 2025-02-01

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Incidence of endometrial cancer in BRCA mutation carriers

  Gynecologic Oncology · 2024-08-22 · 3 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Validation study of risk-reduction activities after personalized breast cancer education tool in the WISDOM study

  npj Breast Cancer · 2024-10-13 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  Breast cancer risk reduction strategies have been well-validated, but barriers remain for high-risk individuals to adopt them. We performed a study among participants with high risk of breast cancer to validate whether a virtual breast health decision tool impacted a participant's willingness to start risk-reducing activities, identify barriers to adopting these strategies, and understand if it affects breast cancer anxiety. The study sample was 318 participants in the personalized (investigational) arm of the Women Informed to Screen Depending on Measures of risk (WISDOM) clinical trial. After reviewing the tool, these participants completed a feedback survey. We demonstrated that 15 (4.7%) women were taking endocrine risk reduction, 123 (38.7%) were reducing alcohol intake, and 199 (62.6%) were exercising. In the three-month follow-up survey of 109 respondents, only 8 of 61 (13.1%) women who considered endocrine risk reduction pursued it. In contrast, 11 of 16 (68%) participants who considered alcohol reduction pursued the activity, and 14 of 24 (58%) women who considered exercise followed through. Participants listed fear of side effects as the most common barrier to endocrine risk reduction. We also present further steps to be taken to improve the effectiveness of the Breast Health Decisions tool.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Abstract PO4-11-02: Accelerating Progress and Achieving Health Equity: The American Cancer Society National Breast Cancer Roundtable

  Cancer Research · 2024-05-02

  article

  Abstract Background: Breast cancer continues to be a leading cause of death among women, with disparities in mortality rates persisting, particularly for Black women and under-supported communities. In response to this urgent need, the American Cancer Society (ACS) has launched the American Cancer Society National Breast Cancer Roundtable (ACS NBCRT) to address complex challenges across the breast cancer continuum and improve access to quality care. Methods: The ACS NBCRT is a coalition of organizations committed to eliminating disparities and reducing mortality rates. By leveraging strategic partnerships and using the Collective Impact Model, the ACS NBCRT aims to ensure equitable access to screening, treatment, and comprehensive support services. The roundtable follows the proven ACS Roundtable Model, which brings together diverse contributors to drive progress on breast cancer priorities. Results: The ACS NBCRT, chaired by prominent leaders in the field, has engaged thought leaders, organizations, policymakers, and individuals with lived experiences to identify initial roundtable priorities through a community-informed process. The ACS NBCRT conducted three listening sessions, 8 focus groups, 10 community conversations, and 33 informant interviews and received 700+ responses to a nationwide survey. As a result of this work, the ACS NBCRT leadership was able to interpret the data to inform our roundtable's strategic priorities focused on risk reduction, screening, early detection, access to treatment, clinical trials, and support services. Workgroups will address cross-cutting approaches, including health equity, patient navigation, and education, to develop short- and long-term goals for the roundtable. This approach to addressing health equity through our priority areas is intentional, and it is reflected in our engagement with lived experience experts and diverse community contributors in our early planning, formative research, leadership recruitment, and our member engagement and recruitment. Conclusion: Through its Collective Impact approach, the ACS NBCRT is poised and positioned to accelerate progress, promote health equity, and reduce the burden of breast cancer. The roundtable is uniquely designed to identify and addresses gaps by providing a neutral platform to convene diverse stakeholders to establish national priorities across the cancer continuum, catalyze policy and patient care solutions, promote evidence-based strategies and translate them into practice, and leverage volunteer knowledge and experiences to inform the reduction of health disparities. The roundtable's commitment to strategic partnerships, evidence-based strategies, and health equity will drive change and allow the ACS NBCRT to lead the national dialogue on breast cancer. Implications: The establishment of the ACS NBCRT signifies a crucial step towards achieving health equity in breast cancer care. By addressing disparities and promoting collaborative solutions, the roundtable aims to improve outcomes for all people facing breast cancer. Citation Format: Ashley Dedmon, Theresa Petee, Olufunmilayo Olopade, John Williams, Arif Kamal, Sarah Shafir. Accelerating Progress and Achieving Health Equity: The American Cancer Society National Breast Cancer Roundtable [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO4-11-02.

  PublisherDOI

• Abstract PO1-01-11: Development and Validation of a Breast Cancer Recurrence Model Demonstrates Accurate Identification of Patients with Favorable Long-Term Outcomes

  Cancer Research · 2024-05-02

  article

  Abstract Background: The Oncotype DX (ODX) test is a 21-gene expression assay widely used for the prediction of risk recurrence in early-stage breast cancer, but it may be possible to identify patients who can forgo testing using only clinicopathologic variables. In 2018, the National Cancer Database (NCDB) began reporting quantitative histologic parameters for estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and Ki-67 expression in breast cancer patients. Inclusion of these variables may improve the development of nationally applicable models to predict ODX results using clinicopathologic variables alone. Methods: Using a cohort of patients from the NCDB diagnosed from 2018–2020 with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2-negative, Stage I-III breast cancer, we trained machine learning models to predict high-risk (26-100) ODX score. A subset comprising 80% of patients was used for model training, while the remaining data were set aside for internal validation. An external validation cohort was selected from the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMC), including patients diagnosed from 2009–2021. Feature selection, model architecture selection, and hyperparameter tuning were performed using 10-fold cross-validation within the NCDB training set. We compared a model with quantitative ER, PR, and Ki-67; a model with only quantitative ER and PR, and a model without quantitative immunohistochemistry – to best reflect the likely data available in a variety of practice patterns. The primary endpoint was the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) for prediction of high-risk ODX results in the UCMC validation cohort. Models were also evaluated as rule-out tests to identify low-risk patients who did not require further ODX testing, using a high (90%) sensitivity threshold, fit in the NCDB training dataset. Results: We identified 53,346 patients from the NCDB cohort meeting the inclusion criteria; 7% had a high risk ODX score, with a median follow-up time of 28 months. The UCMC validation cohort included 896 patients, and was more diverse, with 30% non-Hispanic Black patients (versus 8% in NCDB), more high-risk patients (18% with high ODX), and a longer median follow-up time of 55 months. In the NCDB validation cohort, models incorporating quantitative ER/PR (AUROC 0.78, 95% CI 0.77–0.80) and quantitative ER/PR/Ki-67 (AUROC 0.81, 95% CI 0.80–0.83) both performed better than the non-quantitative model (AUROC 0.70, 95% CI 0.68–0.72). These results were preserved in the external UCMC cohort, where the ER/PR model (AUROC 0.86, 95% CI 0.80–0.92, p = 0.032) and the ER/PR/Ki-67 model (AUROC 0.87, 95% CI 0.81–0.93) outperformed the non-quantitative model (AUROC 0.80, 95% CI 0.73–0.87, p = 0.009). The high sensitivity rule-out threshold of the ER/PR model predicted that 30% of patients in the UCMC cohort would be low ODX, and the ER/PR/Ki-67 model predicted 44% as low risk – negative predictive value was over 96% for prediction of high ODX. Of the patients predicted to be low risk by the quantitative models, none had a documented high ODX score, and recurrence was &amp;lt; 3% at 5 years. The hazard ratio for recurrence free interval, adjusted for age and comorbidity score, of patients predicted to be high risk by this threshold was 2.96 (95% CI 1.02–8.58) for the ER/PR model and 3.84 (95% CI 1.48–9.97) for the ER/PR/Ki-67 model. Conclusions: We present externally validated and nationally applicable models that identify approximately half of HR-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer patients who are unlikely to have high ODX results using widely available quantitative clinicopathologic variables. Patients identified as low risk by these models have excellent long-term outcomes and may be able to forgo adjuvant chemotherapy without further genomic testing. Citation Format: Asim Dhungana, Augustin Vannier, Fangyuan Zhao, Jincong Freeman, Poornima Saha, Megan Sullivan, Katharine Yao, Elbio Flores, Olufunmilayo Olopade, Dezheng Huo, Alexander Pearson, Frederick Howard. Development and Validation of a Breast Cancer Recurrence Model Demonstrates Accurate Identification of Patients with Favorable Long-Term Outcomes [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO1-01-11.

  PublisherDOI

• Abstract GS4-02: Analysis of clinical outcomes and expression-based immune signatures by race in the I-SPY 2 trial

  Cancer Research · 2022-02-15 · 3 citations

  article

  Abstract Background Transcriptomic immune-related gene signatures have been associated with achievement of pathologic complete response (pCR) and prognosis in the neoadjuvant setting. I-SPY 2 is a multicenter, phase 2 platform trial using response-adaptive randomization within subtypes defined by receptor status (HR/HER2) and MammaPrint (MP) risk to evaluate novel agents as neoadjuvant therapy for women with high-risk breast cancer. Given racial disparities in mortality from breast cancer and the paucity of racial demographic data from clinical trials, we aimed to evaluate the association between racial groups and baseline characteristics, including expression-based subtypes and immune signatures, treatment response, and prognosis of patients enrolled in the I-SPY 2 TRIAL. Methods Our study population included 990 I-SPY 2 patients. 15 patients identified as part of a racial group with &amp;lt;10 patients enrolled in the trial and were excluded from analysis. Pre-treatment expression data was available for 971 patients. Follow-up data was available for 907 patients; median follow-up time of 4.4 yrs. Chi-square test was used to assess associations between racial groups and pre-treatment SBR grade, HR/HER2 defined subtypes, intrinsic subtype (defined by BluePrint 80-gene molecular subtyping) and residual cancer burden (RCB) class. Logistic regression was used to evaluate race association with pCR. Cox proportional hazard modeling was used to assess the association between racial groups and event free survival (EFS) in a univariate setting, adjusting for pCR status. Association between racial groups and 28 expression signatures related to immune, proliferation, ER and HER2 pathway was analyzed using ANOVA with post-hoc Tukey test in the overall population and in each receptor subtype. Results Of 975 patients included in our analysis, 787 (81%) were White, 68 (7%) were Asian, and 120 (12%) were Black or African American. No significant associations between race and pre-treatment SBR grade (p=0.49), HR/HER2 defined subtypes (p=0.09), or expression-based subtypes (p=0.25) were observed. pCR rates do not significantly differ by racial groups (Odds ratio of pCR relative to White: 1.00 for Asian and 0.89 for Black or African American); and no significant differences in RCB class distribution by race was observed (p=0.88). Event free survival was not associated with patient racial group in a univariate Cox model (Hazard ratio relative to White: 1.10, p=0.73 for Asian and 1.37, p=0.13 for Black or African American). Among the 28 expression signatures evaluated, four were differentially expressed among racial groups within the overall population (F-test p&amp;lt;0.05): IFN module, B cell signature, Dendritic cell signature, and Mitotic score. Pairwise comparisons between racial groups with post-hoc Tukey test identified significant differences in IFN module expression between Black or African American vs. White (p=0.019) and Dendritic cell signature expression between Asian vs White (p=0.047). Among patients in the TNBC subtype, three signatures (dendritic cell signature, macrophage signature and ERBB2 module) were differentially expressed between Black or African American and White patients (p=0.002, 0.016 and 0.007). Conclusion Our analysis demonstrates that among women with high risk breast cancer, race does not affect subtype specific response rates nor event free survival. Distribution of subtypes previously shown to be associated with pCR in the I-SPY2 trial did not significantly differ among racial groups indicating race is less likely than tumor biology to predict response. The decreased expression of immune signatures observed in Black or African American women with TNBC suggests possible differential sensitivity to immunotherapy plus combination chemotherapy. Tumor immune multiplex studies are underway to further investigate. Citation Format: Beverly Kyalwazi, Christina Yau, Olufunmilayo Olopade, A. Jo Chien, Anne Wallace, Andres Forero-Torres, Lajos Pusztai, Erin Ellis, Kathy Albain, Anne Blaes, Barbara Haley, Judy Boughey, Anthony Elias, Amy Clark, Claudine Isaacs, Rita Nanda, Hyo Han, Rachel Yung, Debu Tripathy, Kristen Edmiston, Rebecca Viscusi, Donald Northfelt, Qamar Khan, Ashish Sanil, Scott Berry, Smita Asare, Amy Wilson, Gillian Hirst, Nola Hylton, Michelle Melisko, Jane Perlmutter, Hope Rugo, Fraser Symmans, Laura van ‘t Veer, Donald Berry, Laura Esserman. Analysis of clinical outcomes and expression-based immune signatures by race in the I-SPY 2 trial [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2021 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2021 Dec 7-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(4 Suppl):Abstract nr GS4-02.

  PublisherDOI

• Self-Efficacy and Willingness to Implement Narrative Communication Interventions: Mixed Methods Study Among Breast Cancer Patients and Survivors at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria

  JCO Global Oncology · 2022-05-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  PURPOSE Globally, black women experience poorer breast cancer (BC) outcomes suggesting the need for effective health promotion approaches to increase perceived severity and improve screening practices for early detection. Although, narrative communication by patients or survivors are increasingly considered an effective approach for better BC outcomes, there is limited information on its use in Nigeria. This study assessed the self-efficacy and willingness of BC patients and survivors at the University College Hospital, Ibadan to implement narrative communication interventions. METHODS This study utilized a mixed-method convergent parallel design. Five patients were recruited for in-depth interviews (IDI). A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 102 patients on perception and the generalized self-efficacy to implement narrative communication interventions. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis for qualitative and descriptive and inferential statistics for quantitative data. RESULTS Mean age of the respondents was 49.3 ± 10.2 years. Over three quarters (79.4%) of respondents had good self-efficacy to implement narrative communication. Majority of respondents (87.3%) were willing to share lived experiences during narrative communication interventions. Over 90% (94.1%) agreed that health programs on BC anchored by patients and survivors will enable individuals make healthy decisions than interactions with clinicians only. Respondents' educational attainment was significantly associated with perception and self-efficacy to implement narrative communication intervention programs ( P &lt; .05). Patients opined that a pre-diagnosis discussion with a BC patient or survivor would have increased their perceived severity and susceptibility. CONCLUSION This study highlights the potentials of BC patients and survivors as breast health educators sharing their lived experiences to empower and motivate women to act on health information on BC prevention and screening. Findings could guide the design of population-level interventions on BC prevention and screening.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant P50ES012382

  NIH · $9.2M · 2011

Frequent coauthors

• C.S. Olopade

  University of Chicago

  49 shared

• Ji-Min Kim

  Chungnam National University

  49 shared

• Christian Theodosis

  University of Maryland, Baltimore

  49 shared

• Madeleine Turner

  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital

  49 shared

• Corey B Bills

  University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

  49 shared

• J. Michael Millis

  University of Chicago

  49 shared

• Christine Babcock

  49 shared

• Melodie Kinet

  University of Chicago

  49 shared

Education

• M.D.

  University of Ibadan

  1980

• Other, Medicine, Surgery, Pediatrics

  University College Hospital

  1981

• Other

  Nigerian Navy Hospital

  1983

• Other, Internal Medicine

  Cook County Hospital

  1984

• Other, Internal Medicine

  Cook County Hospital

  1986

• Other, Internal Medicine

  Cook County Hospital

  1987

• Other, Hematology/Oncology

  University of Chicago

  1991

Awards & honors

• Order of Lincoln State of Illinois (2019)
• Ron Ross Award (2019)
• PacRim Breast and Prostate Cancer Group award committee (201…
• Villanova Mendal Medal Award Villanova University (2017)
• NAPA Lifetime Achievement Award Nigerian American Profession…