Cara Hatzinger was awarded the NIH F31 Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the NCI which began on August 1st, 2026.
Cara received her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Gettysburg College.
Cara is a doctoral candidate in Microbiology in the Rutkowski Lab.
We asked Cara to tell us about her research and hopes for the future.
Tell us about your research: The Rutkowski lab studies how the gut microbiome impacts anti-tumor immunity, metastasis, and immunotherapy response. My research focuses on ovarian cancer, a disease that rarely responds to immunotherapeutic intervention. Our lab has discovered that ovarian tumors allow gut microbes to leak into the tumor microenvironment, where a bacterial component called flagellin chronically activates toll-like receptor 5 (TLR5) signaling on immune cells. This chronic signaling ultimately leads to a more tumor-permissive environment. We have found that in the absence of TLR5 signaling, ovarian tumors respond well to a combination of FLT3 ligand and anti-PDL1 immunotherapies. My project aims to define how chronic TLR5 signaling shapes the ovarian tumor microenvironment and impacts this combination therapy’s efficacy. Ultimately, I hope to define targetable pathways to mitigate the negative effects of TLR5 signaling in order to enhance the efficacy of immune therapy for patients with ovarian cancer.
What drives or motivates your scientific pursuits? I remember the first time I learned about immunotherapies such as bispecific antibodies and CAR-T cells. The notion that researchers could design ways to harness a patient’s immune system to become a therapeutic agent itself was striking to me. From then on, I knew that I wanted to be a part of a scientific community dedicated to improving patient outcomes. Plus, I learn something new every day!
What are your future goals? My future goal is to continue as a biomedical researcher with a focus on translational cancer immunology and immunotherapy. Before I joined BIMS, I worked in an industry position where I was exposed to the lengthy drug development pipeline and gained an appreciation for the intense collaboration that it takes to get a cancer therapeutic from early development to eventual clinical implementation. I hope to continue my involvement in translational research and be involved in progressing new therapies from the bench to patients.