THE TEAM EDITORS
Brandi Marsh, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Editor, Biological Sciences
Brandi Marsh began her training in biomedical engineering at Columbia University. She then moved on to SUNY Downstate Medical Center and NYU-Polytechnic, where she completed her M.D./Ph.D. dual degree in 2015. Her doctoral research focused on brain machine interfaces in macaques and on developing new algorithms that allow neuroprosthetics to function in novel environments. She will begin her residency with a preliminary year of general surgery at Northshore LIJ, followed by a residency in Radiology at SUNY Downstate Medical Center. Dr. Marsh is also the Founder and Artistic Director of Art Collision, Inc., an organization that uses the arts to raise awareness and funds against human trafficking.
Benjamin Lok, M.D.
Associate Editor, Biological Sciences
Benjamin graduated from New York University Stern School of Business with a bachelors in Management and Organizational Analysis and obtained his M.D. at New York University School of Medicine. He was a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Medical Research Fellow at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center during which he investigated the role of breast cancer susceptibility genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, in DNA repair and homologous recombination. He has co-authored research articles in journals such as Cancer, The Oncologist, International Journal of Radiation Biology Oncology and Physics, and Oncogene. Benjamin is also the Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder of For Hope International, an organization that exists to empower Haitian health professionals to provide high-quality, sustainable medical care to under-served communities in Haiti.
Email: benjamin.lok [at] cancerincytes.org
Carl Olsen, Ph.D.
Associate Editor, Culture & Policy
Carl received his doctorate in the Scandinavian Department at the University of California, Berkeley. He taught for Berkeley as a graduate student instructor and a lecturer for over eight years, including more than sixteen Reading and Composition courses. In 2007 he received both the Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor Award and the Teaching Effectiveness Award. In addition to his academic work he is a published poet and writes the blog VikingsBooksEtc.
Email: cgolsen [at] cancerincytes.org
Juliana Zhu, Esq. Senior Editor, Culture & Policy
Juliana is an attorney licensed in California and New York. Her private practice includes immigration and business law, and estate planning. Since 2006, she has provided legal services to human trafficking victims and low-income families through organizations including the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST), Nightlight International - Los Angeles, Project Hope at the Dream Center, and Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles.
Email: jzhu [at] cancerincytes.org
Matt Kaku, M.A.
Associate Editor, Healthcare
Studied psychology at Notre Dame de Namur University and is a registered Marriage and Family Therapist intern. He currently does mental health consultation for an American health insurance company.
Email: matt.kaku [at] cancerincytes.org
Quyen Vo, Ph.D., J.D.
Associate Editor, Culture & Policy
Quyen obtained his J.D. from Berkeley's Boalt School of Law and practices law in Texas. Before this he studied history as an undergraduate at Yale and then as a doctoral student at Cambridge.
Email: quyen.vo [at] cancerincytes.org
Steve Mason, Ph.D. Deputy Senior Editor, Biological Sciences (Inactive)
Steve received his doctorate from the University of California, San Diego, studying the molecular response to hypoxia. He was then an NIH-funded research fellow at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, examining the interactions between metastatic breast cancer cells and their microenvironments. He has several peer-reviewed publications in journals including PLoS Biology and Trends in Cell Biology. Following his post-doctoral work, Steve was an associate editor with Nature Publishing Group before joining Cancer InCytes.
Email: s.mason [at] cancerincytes.org
Sharon E. Chin, M.P.H. Social Media Editor (Inactive)
Sharon obtained her M.P.H. from Rutgers University in New Jersey. She obtained her B.Sc. in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia.
Email: sharon.chin [at] cancerincytes.org
Christine Balarezo, Ph.D.
Associate Editor, Culture & Policy
Christine received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University the North Texas. Her cross national, multiregional research centers on human rights, human trafficking, and political, gender, and sexual violence. Most recently, she was a Fulbright Postdoctoral Research Scholar at the University of Haifa, where she conducted mixed methods research (including elite and non-elite interviews) on human trafficking in Israel. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Political Science Education and PS: Political Science and Politics.
Email: christine.balarezo [at] cancerincytes.org
Arvin Gouw, M.A., Ph.D. Senior Editor, Biological Sciences (Inactive)
Arvin obtained his B.A. in Molecular Cell Biology with an emphasis in Neurobiology and then a M.A. in Endocrinology, both from the University of California, Berkeley where he researched aging, adult neurogenesis, and the cognitive neuroscience of sleep & motor learning. He then went to Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for his Ph.D. in Pathobiology, where he studied the role of the oncogene c-Myc in cancer lipid metabolism. He has co-authored research articles in journals including Cell Metabolism, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Learning & Memory. He is former Editor-in-Chief of the Johns Hopkins newsletter: The Restriction Digest, and an Intern Editor of Nature Publishing Group's Journal of Lab Investigations.
Email: arvingouw [at] cancerincytes.org
Julia Choi, Ph.D.
Associate Editor, Biological Sciences
Julia obtained her doctorate in molecular imaging at the University of California, Davis, with a focus on cancer biomarkers and small animal PET imaging. She is continuing in a new direction of medical device development, with an interest in innovative, low cost, affordable healthcare. Julia believes in mentorship, STEM outreach, and community building, and loves it when simple yet powerful science/engineering ideas intersect with practical applications for real-life patients.
Email: jchoi [at] cancerincytes.org
CULTURE, POLICY,
& LAW ENFORCEMENT
BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
& HEALTHCARE
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Barbara P. Recine, M.A. Guest Editor 2019-2020
Barb, a Clinical Research Coordinator in the Stanford Pediatrics department, obtained her B.A. in Human Biology from Stanford University and a M.A. in Human Physiology from San Jose State University. After initially working in healthcare outcomes research with the Veterans Administration, she volunteered in medical clinics in rural India, including clinics especially designed for trafficked women.
Email: b.recine [at] cancerincytes.org