Sharareh Gholamin, MD

After graduating from Shahid Beheshti Medical School, Tehran, Iran, Sharareh Gholamin pursued her career as a postdoctoral research fellow at Stanford University. 

Gholamin’s research focuses on developing a humanized anti-CD47 antibody as a safe and effective treatment for adult and pediatric brain tumors. The result of this study established the grounds for bringing the therapy to phase I clinical trial. She was simultaneously involved in a number of collaborative works, where they studied epigenomics and molecular pathways involved in the growth of malignant brain tumors. After experiencing cancer on a personal level when her mother succumbed to ovarian cancer in 2016, Gholamin became further cognizant of the demand for the development of novel immune-mediated approaches in the fight against this devastating disease. Therefore, she joined the Biology and Bioengineering PhD Program at Caltech where the Caltech/City of Hope interdisciplinary environment has offered an unparalleled setting to address this demand. 

Building upon previous experience studying macrophages and microglial cells in brain tumors, Gholamin is now focused on understanding the modulatory role of microbiome on myeloid as well as adaptive immune cells and associated effect on response to CAR T-cell therapies. At City of Hope, they also decipher the mechanism(s) of response and resistance to combinations of CAR T-cell therapy with PD-1 blockade approaches against brain tumors. Together, the results from these studies may provide additional insight into understanding primary and acquired resistance mechanisms to immunotherapies. As a physician-scientist, she hopes to use her expertise to progress the fight against cancer.

• 2002-2010: Shahid Beheshti Medical School, Tehran, Iran
• 2004-2010: Research Coordinator, Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Shahid Beheshti Medical University, Tehran, Iran
• 2005-2010: Research Coordinator, Clinical Research & Development Center, Shahid Modarres Hospital, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran
• 2010-2011: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Center for AIDS Research, Division of Infectious Disease, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA
• 2011-July2016: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Neurosurgery and Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA
• 2014-2017: Member of Ludwig Center for Cancer Research
• 2016 - Present: PhD, Californial Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California

• 2020: Parker Scholar Award, Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy
• 2017: Association of Professors and Scholars of Iranian Heritage (APSIH), young investigator award.
• 2016: Iranian Scholarship Foundation award for excellence in education.
• 2015: Finalist for 2015 AP. Giannini Fellowship award.
• 2015: Selected as Group Facilitators for Management Matters, Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education (VPGE), Stanford.
• 2015: Hume Grant Writing Coach Trainer, Stanford.
• 2014-2015: SLIC Facilitator, Stanford Leaders in Communication.