Danielle Pastor, DO

Description

Danielle Pastor, D.O., Ph.D., is a medical oncologist who specializes in treating patients with colorectal cancer and gastrointestinal malignancies. Dr. Pastor earned her medical degree with honors from the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine of the New York Institute of Technology. She then pursued a combined general surgery residency and doctoral training program at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, earning her doctorate in cell and molecular biology for her research on the inflammatory pathways involved in colorectal cancer. Following her residency, Dr. Pastor received additional training in colon and rectal surgery at the University of Minnesota Medical Center, and subsequently completed a residency in internal medicine at Albany Medical Center with the goal of pursuing further training in medical oncology. She then joined the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland as a clinical fellow in medical oncology, where she then remained as faculty and as a clinical senior staff member to continue to develop her expertise in gastrointestinal oncology and translational research. Prior to joining the clinical staff at Sibley Memorial Hospital, she served in the roles of Chief of the Medical Oncology Consult Service at NCI, Program Director of the Advanced Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship Program, and Associate Program Director of Medical Oncology of the Hematology Oncology Fellowship Program at NIH. Dr. Pastor’s research explores the relationship between inflammation, immunity, and carcinogenesis—and how these factors influence the development and behavior of gastrointestinal cancers. Her work also focuses on strategies to overcome tumor resistance to immune-based therapies. With a multidisciplinary background in surgery, internal medicine, and oncology, Dr. Pastor brings a comprehensive approach to the care of patients with complex cancers. She is dedicated to providing comprehensive, compassionate care that integrates the latest advances in cancer research with individualized treatment plans for each patient.