Since joining MD Anderson in 2013, she has shown that targeted therapies can prime tumors for immunotherapy, laying groundwork for combination regimens now standard in oncology.

Her work reflects extensive collaboration across MD Anderson and global institutions, including involvement in initiatives like a traveling science exhibit about the gut microbiome and healthy lifestyle choices.

Her training spans nursing, biology, and medicine, with an MD from the Medical College of Pennsylvania, surgical residency at MGH, oncology and immunotherapy fellowships, and an MMSc from Harvard, culminating in a translational research lab at MGH before joining MD Anderson.

Dr. Jennifer Wargo, a physician-scientist at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, has been elected to the 2026 class of Fellows of the AACR Academy for her groundbreaking work on how the gut microbiome influences cancer biology and treatment response.

MD Anderson leadership, including President Peter W.T. Pisters, commends Dr. Wargo for advancing patient care and global cancer research impact.

Her pioneering research demonstrates that gut microbiome diversity modulates responses to immunotherapy in metastatic melanoma and explores how microbiome changes can enhance immunotherapy outcomes, including trials on high-fiber diets.

For more information on UT MD Anderson AACR content, readers can visit MDAnderson.org/AACR.

She leads the Platform for Innovative Microbiome and Translational Research (PRIME-TR) and serves as deputy director of MD Anderson’s NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, having joined MD Anderson in 2013.

She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Physicians and has received honors such as the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award from the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science & Technology.

Wargo’s work positions the microbiome as a key modulator of immune checkpoint blockade efficacy, while she investigates predictive immune biomarkers and microbial mechanisms of treatment response.

Notable publications, including a Science paper, established gut microbiome diversity as a determinant of immunotherapy success in metastatic melanoma and spurred interest in dietary and microbial interventions to boost efficacy.

UT MD Anderson leadership, including Peter WT Pisters and Albert Koong, highlight the impact of her work on cancer research and patient care.