Abenaa M. Brewster

Abenaa M. Brewster is a Tenured Associate Professor of Breast Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Her research focuses on breast cancer genetics, particularly polygenic risk prediction for subtypes in women of African ancestry, and on lifestyle interventions for cancer survivors. She has led breakthrough multi-ancestry transcriptome-wide association studies and trials targeting chemotherapy-resistant triple-negative breast cancer. Her recent work also examines decision-support tools for preventive therapy uptake and barriers to healthy behavior adoption in oncology patients. Brewster was awarded a $1.46 million grant for her study on mental and social well-being in women undergoing contralateral prophylactic mastectomy, reflecting her commitment to integrating genomics, behavior, and patient-centered outcomes. Her international collaborations advance equitable, personalized breast cancer care.