Singh appointed to BCRFA Medical Advisory Council

By Lindsay Lyle
lalyle@health.southalabama.edu

Seema Singh, Ph.D., professor of pathology at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama, was recently appointed to the Medical Advisory Council of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama (BCRFA).

The Medical Advisory Council has the critical job of reviewing the foundation’s funding requests from researchers across the state, ensuring that the science is sound and BCFRA investments have maximum impact.

Beth Davis, BCRFA president and CEO, said council members are the foundation’s “boots on the ground” within the medical community. “They are megaphones at their respective research institutes, spreading the word about our mission and encouraging investigators who are focusing on breast cancer to pursue BCRFA funding,” she said.

Singh, who is also a senior member of the cancer biology program at the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute, said she is honored to represent USA on the council. “I would advocate for funding the most impactful science, out-of-the-box research ideas, and research aimed at improving health equity,” she said.

According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the most common malignancy affecting women in the state and the second leading cause of cancer-related death. “Funding innovative and promising science will pave the way for effective management of breast cancer in the future and thus enhance the life expectancy of women in our nation and worldwide,” Singh said.

Her research interests include the role of inflammatory signaling in cancer progression, angiogenesis and metastasis, cancer stem cells, and cancer health disparities.

Founded in 1996, the BCRFA is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to find a cure for breast cancer by funding promising breast cancer research in Alabama and raising community awareness and funding for that research. BCRFA’s investment in life-saving research totals over $12 million.