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Henske Receives Award from the Society for Women's Health Research

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Dr. Elizabeth Petri Henske, M.D., of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pa., has been awarded the second annual Society for Women’s Health Research Medtronic Prize for Scientific Contributions to Women’s Health for her work in the field of sex differences research and women’s health. Henske received $75,000 and an award statue at the Society for Women's Health Research’s annual gala dinner on April 30, 2007.

The prize was established to recognize a women scientist or engineer for her contributions to women’s health and encourage women to work on issues uniquely related to women’s health. To be considered, each nominee must be in the middle of her career, have devoted a significant part of her work to this area, and served as a role model and mentor for both colleagues and students.

Henske’s research is focused on the genetic and cellular mechanisms leading to tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). LAM is an often-fatal lung disease almost exclusively affecting women. LAM has a stronger female predisposition than lupus or breast cancer, and may have the strongest biological sex predisposition of any human disease, except for diseases of the genital organs. Dr. Henske discovered that TSC2 mutations are a cause of LAM and demonstrated that LAM cells can migrate or metastasize to the lung. She is currently investigating the cellular and developmental origin of LAM cells and the mechanisms through which female hormones such as estrogen may promote their growth and metastasis.

The cellular pathways that are activated in tuberous sclerosis and LAM are also activated in many forms of cancer, and in diabetes and obesity. Understanding the causes of LAM may, therefore, have a broad impact on other human diseases.

Henske is a tenured, senior member of the division of medical science at Fox Chase. She also holds appointments at Temple University and Drexel University. She earned her undergraduate degree summa cum laude from Yale University, where she majored in molecular biochemistry and biophysics, and her medical degree from Harvard Medical School. She was trained in Internal Medicine and Oncology at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

The prize winner is annually selected by an award jury of science professionals chosen by the Society for Women’s Health Research, a Washington, D.C., based advocacy organization working to improve the health of all women through research, education and advocacy. The prize is supported by Medtronic, Inc., a world leader in medical technology providing lifelong solutions for people with chronic disease.

For more information on the Society for Women’s Health Research, the prize or Dr. Henske, contact Karen Young, media relations coordinator, at 202-496-5001 or karen@womenshealthresearch.org.

This is an open-access article

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