Yeboa Laboratory
Debra Nana Yeboa, M.D.
Principal Investigator
- Departments, Labs and Institutes
- Labs
- Yeboa Laboratory
Areas of Research
- Radiation Oncology
- Radiation Therapy
- Brain and CNS Tumor
Welcome to the Yeboa Clinical Research Team/Laboratory at MD Anderson Cancer Center! Our team conducts research to uncover innovative radiosurgery and radiation oncology treatment techniques to advance the clinical outcomes of patients with central nervous system (CNS) malignancies.
Our Areas of Research
Intro
Research efforts in the Yeboa Laboratory have resulted in several contributions to science, specifically in the field of radiosurgery and radiation oncology. Research in the Yeboa clinical research group focuses on:
- Health outcomes research
- Clinical trials
- Comparative effectiveness research
- Clinical trial development and educational protocol research programs
The Yeboa Lab has established several exciting collaborations across MD Anderson and other external collaborators. It is developing a multidisciplinary approach to understand and improve outcomes in brain metastasis, gliomas and spine tumors. Dr. Yeboa is the 2019 recipient of the MD Anderson Cancer Center Shirley Stein Scientific Endowed Research Award for developing, writing and opening as principal investigator the Preop vs Postop SRS Brain Metastasis trial in 2018.
Clinical Trials
Some of our current clinical trials include:
Our Pre-op versus Post-op SRS trial compares patients who receive radiation treatment before surgery to those who receive surgery before radiation. Our primary objective is to investigate the one year leptomeningeal disease (LMD)-free rate among patients with surgically resectable metastatic brain lesions randomized to post-operative stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) versus pre-operative SRS followed by surgery.
IDH wildtype treatment intensification for historically lower grade gliomas/molecular glioblastomas
The primary aim of our IDH wildtype trial is to determine the progression-free survival (PFS) of IDH wild-type grade II and grade III gliomas with dose escalation therapy at MD Anderson. The objectives are to better define radiation treatment volumes for this unique population of patients with previously considered lower grade histological appearance but with molecular features that could be classified as molecular glioblastoma.
Spine radiosurgery with MR LINAC
The goal of this clinical research study is to learn whether giving spinal stereotactic radiosurgery (SRSS) that uses a more advanced imaging scan method called Magnetic Resonance imaging with a Linear Accelerator (MR-LINAC) during treatment will lead to improved responses to treatment and better quality of life.
Health Services Projects
Our health services projects have included:
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Central Nervous System Malignancies
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Gastrointestinal (GI) Malignancies
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Gynecological (Gyn) Malignancies
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Head and Neck Malignancies
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Lymphoma/Leukemic Malignancies
- Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes of Pediatric Malignancies
About Debra Nana Yeboa, M.D.
Debra Nana Yeboa, M.D., is an Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology at MD Anderson and holds a joint appointment in Health Services Research. She joined the MD Anderson faculty after completing her medical training at Yale and UPenn.
Her clinical interests lie in advancing the clinical outcomes of patients with brain or spine cancers. Her research interests include clinical trial, health outcomes, health disparities and comparative effectiveness research. While serving as the Central Nervous System (CNS) and Pediatric Radiation Oncology Section Research Director, she is dedicated to enhancing the outstanding multidisciplinary clinical research program at MD Anderson focusing on clinical trial and health outcomes research in radiation oncology. In 2021, Dr. Yeboa was the recipient of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Harold Amos Faculty Development Scholar Program (RWJ AMFDP).
Contact Us
Chinenye Lynette Ejezie, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Program Manager - Research
CLEjezie@MDAnderson.org
Twitter: @ChinenyeLynette
Chinenye Lynette Ejezie, Ph.D., M.P.H., is a Program Manager - Research in Radiation Oncology. She joined the Yeboa Laboratory in the summer of 2022. Her research interests include clinical trials research, health outcomes research, health disparities, cancer prevention and cancer survivorship.