Suzann Duan, PhD

Dr. Duan has worked since 2019 as a postdoc with Gastroenterology & Hepatology Division Chief Juanita L. Merchant, MD, PhD. Her research targets the tumor suppressor protein menin (MEN1), focusing on normal and pre-cancerous changes that lead to a type of cancer called gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, or GEP-NETs. GEP-NETs comprise a group of rare tumors that can secrete hormones and display neural features. Sometimes called carcinoid tumors or islet cell tumors, they can be benign or malignant. In 2023, she received a five-year K01 award for $526,000 to study the role of hedgehog and enteric neural crest cell reprogramming in neuroendocrine differentiation. She considers Reno, Nevada, her hometown.