Naveena Basa Janakiram, PhD

Program Director

Translational Research Program

Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis
National Cancer Institute
9609 Medical Center Drive, Room 3W206
MSC 9726
Bethesda, MD 20892
Phone: (240) 276-5892
Fax: (240) 276-7881
Email: naveena.basajanakiram@nih.gov

Portfolios: Gynecologic (Cervical, Endometrial, Ovarian), and Breast

Naveena B. Janakiram, PhD serves as a Program Director at the Translational Research Program within the Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute (NCI) and manages Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPOREs) in ovarian, endometrial and breast cancer. Dr. Janakiram obtained her PhD in Microbiology from India before moving to the Department of Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC) in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for the post-doctoral research training. She advanced to Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Stephenson Cancer Center, at the OUHSC. Dr. Janakiram has gained scientific and technical expertise over 12 years in translation research for drug development in colon, pancreatic, and ovarian cancers. The specific focus was to understand the immune modulation, inflammation, and molecular changes that occur during the initiation and stepwise progression of cancer and to identify specific immune cell functions and genes as promising targets for drug development to inhibit tumor growth and spread. Additional focus areas included modulation of immune mechanisms related to T cells, NK, and NKT cells in the colon and pancreatic carcinogenesis. Later, she worked as a Research Physiologist with the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, DOD, and as an Associate Professor at the Department of Surgery, Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, Bethesda. She has published over 55 peer-reviewed research articles and four book chapters.