Understanding how the mind, brain, and immune system interact in the context of cancer.
The Biobehavioral Oncology Lab studies how psychosocial and neuroimmune processes impact pediatric and adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients with cancer. Our research focuses on identifying and understanding how positive and negative biopsychosocial factors — like stress, anxiety, depression, resilience and social support — influence clinical cancer outcomes and quality of life for patients.
Investigators
Molly Taylor, MD, MS
Assistant Professor
Bio: Dr. Mallory (Molly) Taylor grew up in rural Lockwood, Missouri. After completing her undergraduate degrees in psychology and microbiology at the University of Arizona, she moved to Santa Barbara, California, to work for a local nonprofit organization and coach volleyball. Next, she did her medical training on the East Coast at Dartmouth Medical School in Hanover, New Hampshire. She completed her pediatrics internship at the University of Chicago and her pediatrics residency at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Dr. Taylor then moved to the small town of Kenai, Alaska, to work as a general pediatrician for one year before returning to Seattle to complete her fellowship in pediatric hematology/oncology. She is an attending physician in the Cancer and Blood Disorders Center with a primary focus on solid tumors. She is also a principal investigator in the Ben Towne Center for Childhood Cancer Research. Her research interest is biobehavioral pediatric oncology.
Research Interests: Stress and resilience biomarkers, patient-reported outcomes, translational psychosocial oncology
Jorie Wittig, BA
Medical Student
Bio: Jorie Wittig is currently a 3rd year medical student at the University of Washington. Originally from Vancouver, WA, she travelled East and earned her bachelor's degree in Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the University of Rochester in upstate NY where she also studied music and played soccer. After graduating in 2020, she returned home to work as a nanny and teach second graders prior to starting medical school fall of 2021. While she has yet to choose a specialty, her current interests include pediatric oncology, internal medicine and palliative care. Her role as a volunteer researcher involves assisting with quantitative and qualitative data entry, interpretation and extraction for several different projects. She is passionate about humanizing healthcare and improving outcomes through targeted, patient-centered research.