Titles and Affiliations
Assistant Professor
Breast Oncologist
Assistant Director, Community Outreach and Engagement
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center
Research area
Determining how genetic mutations affect breast cancer in women from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.
Impact
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States. Although survival rates have improved over time, Black women are still about 40 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than white women. This survival gap is influenced by a range of factors, including differences in tumor biology, inherited genes, access to quality care, and broader social and economic challenges. Approximately 5 to 10 percent of breast cancer cases are inherited, meaning they are caused by gene mutations passed down in families. The most common known genes linked to hereditary breast cancer are BRCA1 and BRCA2, but others such as PALB2, CHEK2, and ATM also play a role. But, we still do not fully understand how these genetic mutations affect breast cancer in women from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, largely because Black women have been underrepresented in breast cancer research. Dr. Reid is addressing this gap in our knowledge by investigating the genetic and clinical factors that affect outcomes. Ultimately, this knowledge will help improve care and survival for all women with breast cancer, especially those who have been historically overlooked in research.
What’s next
Results from Dr. Reid and others suggest that BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations may be more common in Black women with hereditary breast cancer than previously thought. She will build on this observation and analyze tumor samples and medical records from Black women enrolled in two large studies to examine how inherited and tumor-specific mutations influence cancer recurrence and survival. The two studies—the Inherited Cancer Registry (ICARE) and Black Women: Etiology, Survival, and Treatment Outcomes (BEST)–include women from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Dr. Reid aims to build one of the largest and most diverse databases of women with hereditary breast cancer to help us better understand the genetic and clinical factors that affect outcomes. Ultimately, her research will help improve care and survival for all women with breast cancer, especially those who have been historically overlooked in research.
Read more about Dr. Reid’s work as part of BCRF’s Health Equity Initiative here.
Biography
Sonya Reid, MD, MPH is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a breast medical oncologist at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center. Originally from Jamaica, Dr. Reid earned her medical degree from the University of the West Indies in Kingston. She subsequently completed her internal medicine residency and oncology fellowship training in Nashville, Tennessee. During her fellowship at Vanderbilt, she also obtained a Master of Public Health degree, with her thesis focusing on the role of tumor genomics on racial survival disparities in women with hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer.
Dr. Reid’s research is focused on breast cancer genomics and the development of strategies to improve survival outcomes for all patients. Her work is driven by a commitment to reducing disparities in cancer care and ensuring that all patients, particularly those from historically underserved populations, have equitable access to high-quality standard-of-care treatment and clinical trials. She is the recipient of an ASCO Career Development Award and was recently awarded the Robert A. Winn Excellence in Clinical Trials Career Development Award, which will support her continued efforts to design and implement rigorous, inclusive clinical trials in breast cancer.
In addition to her research and clinical work, Dr. Reid was recently appointed Assistant Director of Community Outreach and Engagement at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center. In this leadership role, she collaborates with institutional stakeholders to identify and address barriers to clinical trial participation, with a focus on improving access and enrollment on clinical trials across the cancer center.
