Mary Sehl, MD, PhD

2009-2010 BCRF Project:
ASCO Cancer Foundation Career Development Award

Many factors may play a role in the development of functional decline in older cancer patients. Using an established database of older women with breast cancer, Dr. Sehl and her team will investigate whether treatment choice, health status, age, and other measures are associated with how fast physical function changes over the eight years following breast cancer diagnosis in women aged 65 years and older. They will investigate what patterns of transition are observed, and what predicts whether someone experiences a progression in functional decline or a recovery. Finally, they will study whether the initial rate of decline in physical function affects mortality in breast cancer patients.

Findings from this research will advance understanding of factors associated with functional transitions in older breast cancer survivors, and allow researchers to target a portion of the older population at risk for functional decline, for purposes of prognosis and prevention. They will also be able to identify a group of patients in whom physical functioning is preserved during and after treatment during and following treatment. Such a finding would enhance prognostic information and decision-making in the care of older breast cancer patients.

Mid-Year Progress Report:
Dr. Sehl's goal is to identify a model to identify predictors of functional decline and mortality in older breast cancer survivors. Potential predictors in her model include self-reported measures that are already or can be obtained at an initial visit to the oncologist's office. Thus she expects results from these analyses to be directly applicable to help identify a group of cancer survivors that may be at risk for functional decline. The individuals could then be targeted for early intervention.

Bio:
Mary E. Sehl is a clinical instructor in the Division of Hematology-Oncology in the Department of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she is actively involved in both translational breast cancer research and patient care. She is interested in aging and cancer, and her work involves studying patterns of change in functional status in older breast cancer survivors. Other research involves mathematical and statistical modeling of cancer stem cells and cancer genetics. She received her doctorate in Biomathematics at UCLA for her dissertation work involving probabilistic models of cancer stem cell extinction.