Hope S. Rugo, M.D.

Hope S. Rugo, M.D. is a clinical professor of medicine in the division of hematology and oncology at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, where she directs the Breast Oncology Clinical Trials Program. Her research interests include innovative new therapies for women with advanced breast cancer, evaluation of special circulating cells to help figure out response to therapy, complementary medicine, and supportive care.

Dr. Rugo is an investigator in the Bay Area Spore at UCSF's Carol Franc Buck Breast Cancer Center and the principal investigator of a number of clinical trials. She has published many peer-reviewed papers and has given presentations on a variety of cancer-related topics. Dr. Rugo is a member of the Cancer and Leukemia Group B, a national clinical research group sponsored by the National Cancer Institute.

With a summa cum laude undergraduate degree from Tufts University, Dr. Rugo received her M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and completed both a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the UCSF. Additionally, she completed a two-year post-doctoral fellowship in immunology at Stanford University

Dr. Rugo is pleased to join the Breastcancer.org Professional Advisory Board. She wants to encourage women to participate in clinical trials to be sure that they have every chance to reap the benefits of new treatment breakthroughs.