Throughout my training, I have been focused toward my ultimate goal of becoming a clinical translational researcher in gastrointestinal (GI) oncology, collaborating closely with laboratory-based researchers to move laboratory findings into patients and to answer important clinical questions. My clinical research is centered on the development of novel agents in GI cancers, with particular interest in combinatorial approaches of epigenetic therapies and immunotherapies combinations. I ran the first phase II study of combination epigenetic therapy and immunotherapy in advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma, working with a collaborative team that incorporates leading experts in cancer immunology, epigenetics and drug development. I was awarded the 2018 ASCO Conquer Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award for this project.  Together with Dr. Yarchoan, we are running a clinical trial of a novel neoantigen-specific vaccine in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors for advanced fibrolamellar carcinoma (FLC) (NCT04248569). My laboratory focus has been on developing and validating a preclinical mouse model of FLC to investigate mechanisms underlying FLC pathogenesis, and will become a critical tool for investigating novel therapeutic strategies in FLC.