Dr. Sophie Vasseur is the head of the “Cell Communication and Microenvironment” department and leads the team focused on “Tumor-Stromal Cell Crosstalk and Metabolic Reprogramming in Pancreatic Cancer” at the Cancer Research Center of Marseille (CRCM). She obtained her PhD from the University of Marseille, France, in 1999, and secured a permanent position at the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) in 2002. She also spent three years (2004-2007) working in Dr. T.W. Mak’s laboratory at the Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer, part of the Ontario Cancer Institute in Toronto, Canada.

Her team’s research explores how the metabolic interactions between stromal and tumor cells influence the aggressiveness and chemoresistance of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Her team also investigates how metastatic PDAC tumor cells adapt metabolically once they settle in new sites. Through their work, Dr. Vasseur and her team have published numerous original papers and reviews that shed light on the complex metabolic reprogramming involved in PDAC development and progression to metastasis. By studying the metabolic flexibility of pancreatic tumor cells, Dr. Vasseur aims to identify new metabolic targets that could help reduce the aggressiveness of PDAC.