Past Director, Sandra and Malcolm Comprehensive Breast Care Center at GBMC
Dr Lauren Schnaper is a breast surgical oncologist in Baltimore, Maryland. She was medical director of the Berman Breast Center at Greater Baltimore Medical Center for 25 years and an Associate Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where she was the third woman to graduate from a general surgery training program in the state. Following her residency, she remained on the active staff for 10 years before moving to GBMC.
Dr Schnaper was the past chair of the Cancer and Leukemia Group B breast surgery committee and is known for her focus on breast cancer in the elderly. The seminal study investigating the omission of radiation therapy in women over 70 with early stage breast cancer has changed the options for local treatment in this age group. It was also the first NCI sponsored clinical trial specifically addressing treatment in people over 70.
In 1995, while still at the University of Maryland, she began collaborating with Drs Linda Malkas and Robert Hickey. Their basic science research focuses on circulating proteins in cancer and has resulted in many patents. She is president of their biotech company, RLL, which has commenced its first nationwide phase I clinical trial investigating an anticancer therapeutic agent.
Dr Schnaper has been honored with many community and teaching awards. Her interest in training future cancer researchers remains strong through participation in the Nathan Schnaper Summer Intern Program at the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center