Medical College of Wisconsin · LaBahn Pancreatic Cancer Program
We develop precision therapy for pancreatic cancer in a vertically integrated way, from tissue acquisition and ex vivo drug sensitivity testing, through minimally invasive surgical resection, to multiomic profiling of patient specimens and ex vivo models, with AI integrating the full data stream.
About the lab
The Seo Lab pursues precision therapy for pancreatic cancer through a vertically integrated pipeline. Each patient's tumor is followed from the moment tissue is obtained to a treatment recommendation, and every step of that data stream is generated within the lab and its clinical partners.
Principal Investigator
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, Medical College of Wisconsin
Dr. Seo is a surgical oncologist and a member of the MCW Cancer Center and the LaBahn Pancreatic Cancer Program. He received his A.B. from Harvard University and his M.D. from the University of Michigan, completed general surgery residency at the University of Washington with a research fellowship at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and trained in Complex General Surgical Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Research
Each program starts with human tissue from our own patients and returns to the clinic as a treatment decision or a trial design.
We culture thin slices of living tumor from surgical resections and core needle biopsies and measure how each patient's cancer responds to candidate therapies within days. This ex vivo platform anchors the Pancreas Precision Medicine program at MCW.
We build machine learning models that combine genomic, transcriptomic, pathologic and clinical data to predict outcomes and guide treatment. Examples include e19-9, an AI-derived tumor marker for patients who do not produce CA19-9, and survival models that use TP53 variant allele frequency.
We map immune cells within human pancreatic tumors to understand why most patients do not respond to immunotherapy. Spatial analysis of intact tissue is a growing focus of the lab.
Clinical trials
The lab contributes translational science to trials in the MCW LaBahn Pancreatic Cancer Program.
Randomized phase II trial of preoperative stereotactic body radiation therapy versus conventionally fractionated chemoradiation for resectable, borderline resectable or locally advanced type A pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
Phase II trial of adaptive modification of neoadjuvant therapy based on clinical response in patients with localized pancreatic cancer.
Phase II trial of PurIST classification-guided adaptive neoadjuvant chemotherapy, using RNA expression profiling of endoscopic ultrasound aspiration samples.
Oligometastatic PANcreatic Cancer: Progression-Limiting Utility of SBRT, Surgery, and Sonographic Ablation. A single-arm investigator-initiated trial for patients with oligometastatic pancreatic cancer. Patients receive metastasis-directed therapy with stereotactic body radiation, surgery or histotripsy, and tissue-based drug sensitivity testing with molecular profiling guides precision therapy after treatment.
People
Naveen Kumar Chandrashekar, PhDPostdoctoral Fellow
Kshitij Gaur, MDT32 Resident Research Fellow
Matt Sochor, PhDData Scientist
Melissa MenaDirector, LaBahn Pancreatic Cancer ProgramMedical students
Jason YuanMS3
Bahda YunMS3
Eugene ChenMS3
Imaad SaidMS3Alumni
Gopika SenthilKumar, MD, PhDGeneral Surgery Resident, University of PennsylvaniaTalks and posters
Presenter listed for each talk and poster.
| Date | Meeting | Work | Presenter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | Society of Asian Academic Surgeons Annual Meeting, CincinnatiPlenary oral | Ex vivo organotypic tumor model of metastatic core biopsy as a platform for real-time personalized therapy in pancreatic adenocarcinoma | M. Shee |
| Sep 2026 | AACR Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer, San DiegoPoster | Oncostatin M receptor is a tumor-selective target in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma | N. Chandrashekar |
| Sep 2026 | AACR Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer, San DiegoPoster | Lung as the first site of recurrence predicts long-term overall survival in resected pancreatic adenocarcinoma | K. Gaur |
| Sep 2026 | AACR Special Conference on Pancreatic Cancer, San DiegoPoster | TP53 mutant variant allele frequency improves machine-learning prediction of post-operative survival in pancreatic cancer and marks a proliferative transcriptional program | K. Gaur |
| May 2026 | Pancreas Club, ChicagoOral | Ex vivo organotypic tumor model of metastatic core biopsy | Y.D. Seo |
| May 2026 | Pancreas Club, ChicagoOral | Variant allele frequency machine learning model identifies TP53-mutant phenotypes with worse post-operative survival | K. Gaur |
| Mar 2026 | Society of Surgical Oncology Annual Meeting, PhoenixOral | TP53 mutant variant allele frequency improves machine learning prediction of post-operative survival in pancreatic cancer | I. Said |
| Oct 2025 | AACR Pancreatic Cancer Symposium, BostonInvited poster | Ex vivo organotypic tumor model of metastatic core biopsy | N. Chandrashekar |
| Sep 2025 | Society of Asian Academic Surgeons Annual Meeting, Huntington BeachOral | Prolonged survival after resection of isolated metachronous pulmonary metastases in pancreatic adenocarcinoma | B. Yun |
| Jun 2025 | Central Surgical Association Annual Meeting, IndianapolisOral | Impact of surgery on overall survival in locally advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma | G. SenthilKumar |
| May 2025 | Digestive Disease Week, San DiegoSSAT Shark Tank Innovator Contest, selected SSAT representative | Bridging biopsy to bedside: organotypic core cultures for precision oncology | Y.D. Seo |
Join us
We welcome inquiries from medical students, residents and postdoctoral candidates interested in translational pancreatic cancer research. Send a CV and a short note on your interests.
dave@seo-lab.orgContact
Seo Lab