Dr. Stacey Finley stands as a distinguished leader in the integration of computational approaches with biomedical discovery. She currently serves as the Nichole A. and Thuan Q. Pham Professor and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Southern California, holding joint appointments in the Departments of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science as well as Quantitative and Computational Biology. Following her summa cum laude undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from Florida A&M University, Dr. Finley earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University in 2009, where she developed the computational framework BNICE to predict novel biodegradation pathways. She then pursued postdoctoral research at Johns Hopkins University, where she studied VEGF signaling pathways under the mentorship of Professor Aleksander S. Popel. Since joining USC in 2013, she has established herself as a major force in computational cancer biology, advancing to full professorship in 2023.
Dr. Finley's pioneering research has revolutionized our understanding of cancer through sophisticated computational modeling approaches that bridge molecular biology and clinical applications. Her laboratory has developed groundbreaking computational frameworks that quantitatively map signaling and metabolic networks in cancer, providing unprecedented insights into tumor dynamics and therapeutic responses. The physiologically-based computational models she created for studying VEGF kinetics and transport have become instrumental in advancing cancer therapies and optimizing anti-angiogenic treatments. Her innovative systems biology approaches have been supported by prestigious grants from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and American Cancer Society, demonstrating the high impact of her work across multiple funding agencies. Dr. Finley's research has established computational modeling as an essential tool for decoding cancer complexity and informing precision medicine approaches.
As Director of the Center for Computational Modeling of Cancer at USC, Dr. Finley has created a vibrant hub that fosters interdisciplinary collaboration between computational scientists, biologists, and clinicians. Her leadership extends to the national level where she serves as a standing member of the NIH's Modeling and Analysis of Biological Systems Study Section, shaping funding priorities for systems biology research. Dr. Finley has received numerous accolades including the prestigious NSF CAREER Award and recognition as an AACR NextGen Star, validating her significant contributions to cancer research. Through her mentorship of students and postdoctoral scholars, she is cultivating the next generation of computational biologists who will continue to advance the field. Currently, Dr. Finley's laboratory is expanding its research to incorporate immune cell activation modeling in cancer, poised to make transformative contributions to immunotherapy optimization and combination treatment strategies.
