Dr. Galban is a Research Associate Professor of Radiology with a dual appointment in the Department of Surgery. She is Associate Director of the Center for Basic and Translational Science and a member of the Center for Molecular Imaging and the Rogel Cancer Center. Dr. Galban’s group focuses on developing and establishing imaging technologies and mouse models of various malignancies recapitulating human disease with the goal of developing novel therapies. Ongoing projects in Dr. Galban’s lab include investigating the mechanisms of molecularly targeted and immune-based therapies utilizing imaging in cell culture and mouse models in the lethal pediatric brain tumor Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), with particular focus on targeting cancer stem cells in DIPG and other pediatric gliomas; resistance mechanisms in the tumor microenvironment in KRAS-mutant lung cancer, facilitated by use of KrasG12D inducible and reversible genetically engineered mouse models of NSCLC and patient derived organoids; and identifying molecular and imaging biomarkers for early diagnosis of lung cancer in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Dr. Galban was the recipient of the University of Michigan Medical School’s Research Faculty Recognition Award in 2021 and the medical school’s Endowment for Basic Sciences Teaching Award in 2023.

• Generation of genetically engineered mouse models of cancer.
• Use of molecular imaging as a tool to facilitate understanding of oncogenesis.
• Identification of prognostic markers and surrogate biomarkers in cancer.
• Immune-oncology: understanding the tumor microenvironment to enhance therapeutic efficacy.
• Development of new therapeutic paradigms for pediatric brain tumors.