Mikala Egeblad, the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Tumor Microenvironment at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, received the 2025 Ernst W. Bertner Memorial Award from the Bertner Foundation in honor of her outstanding research into how tumor microenvironments impact cancer progression.
Established in 1950, the annual award recognizes a physician or scientist who has made distinguished contributions to the prevention or cure of cancer. It is named in honor of Ernst William Bertner, the first acting director of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the first president of the Texas Medical Center.
A Johns Hopkins faculty member since 2023, Dr. Egeblad investigates why some microenvironments help tumors grow and metastasize, while others restrict the cancer. Through her research, she aims to advance the understanding of cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis, which could lead to new or better treatment options.
Before her current appointment, Dr. Egeblad was a researcher at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.