headshot Everardo Macias
Everardo Macias, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Pathology, assistant research professor in the Department of Cell Biology, and a member of the Duke Cancer Institute.  

From Migrant Farm Worker to Duke Scientist, Everardo Macias Tackles Prostate Cancer 

Everardo Macias, PhD, assistant professor of Pathology at Duke University School of Medicine, explores the complexities of prostate cancer, the second leading cause of cancer death in men.

His quest to find innovative cancer treatments mirrors his own incredible journey – from a migrant farm worker to a groundbreaking scientist.

Years ago, the future he envisioned for himself was entirely different. A first-generation high school graduate working in the fields of Minnesota as a migrant farm worker, he never even planned to go to college.

Today he leads cutting-edge research, using human cancer genetics and advanced gene testing, to tackle one of prostate cancer’s trickiest players: cancer cells that dodge usual treatments. In lab studies, his method of targeting a protein called NUAK2 successfully slowed down the lethal spread of these cells.

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