Jessica Walrath, PhD, serves as a Science Policy Analyst at Friends of Cancer Research (Friends), a cancer research think tank and non-profit organization based in Washington, DC.  Friends is dedicated to accelerating the nation’s progress towards prevention and treatment of cancer by educating the public and members of congress.

Prior to joining Friends, Dr. Walrath was a post-doctoral fellow in the Genetic Modifiers of Tumorigenesis Section in the Center for Cancer Research at the National Cancer Institute. Her research investigated the role of modifier genes in tumor development in models of brain cancer and sarcoma. Dr. Walrath earned her PhD at the University of Florida in cancer genetics, studying the role of potential cooperating genes in Neurofibromatosis 1-dependent myeloid leukemia and a Bachelors of Science in Biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame. Her research in cancer genetics has been published in several research journals.