Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank

The Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank Team Researchers and Staff

Sara Moellering, BS

Clinical Research Manager
Hematology/Oncology

I joined the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank team in January 2015. My role in the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank is centered around overseeing and managing the operational aspects of the program. Additionally, I assist with expansion of the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank to other sites and support the projects that are currently utilizing the samples and data generated by our biobank. I was inspired to become a part of this organization due to the passion and dedication the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank team has in their quest to find new therapeutic avenues to treat lymphoma. I am thrilled to be a part of this exciting endeavor.

Jessica Scott, BS

Clinical Research Coordinator
Lymphoma Program

I began working with the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank in 2015. As a clinical research coordinator, I am active in patient recruitment, data and sample management, as well as in acquiring archival tissue and tumor samples from outside institutions. I also coordinate and help oversee the expansion of the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank to other sites throughout the Chicagoland area. I continue to be interested in understanding the modalities of cancers, the biology of them, and how they are affected by diet, lifestyle, and environment. I am inspired by the work our team does and look forward to this ongoing research.

Lara Kozloff, MPP, PhD

Clinical Research Coordinator
Lymphoma Program

I have been a part of the biobank program since February 2014. I am a clinical research coordinator for the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank, and over the past two years, I have worked with the team to develop and manage the database, collect tissue samples, and develop methods to collect different types of samples. I enjoy working with the Lymphoma Program and look forward to the growth and expansion of the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank.

Liz Stepniak, MPH

Senior Study Coordinator
Comprehensive Cancer Center, Epidemiology and Research Recruitment Core

I am the senior study coordinator for the Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Epidemiology and Research Recruitment Core (ERRC). I have been with the University of Chicago since 2012 and have worked on numerous projects providing expertise in study design, instrument development, and recruitment of study participants, as well as data collection tasks for a range of hospital and community-based cancer population studies. My role with the Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank is to lead patient recruitment, collect epidemiological data, and facilitate blood collection to contribute to the overall goal of promoting research that will improve the understanding of lymphoma.

Madina Sukhanova, PhD

Technical Director, Cancer Cytogenetics Laboratory
Cytogenetics Lead, Hoogland Lymphoma Biobank

Dr. Sukhanova obtained her doctorate degree in 1998 from the Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Novosibirsk, Russia, where she focused on Drosophila developmental biology. She then came to the University of Chicago to complete a postdoctoral fellowship and later a research associateship with Dr. Wei Du in The Ben May Department for Cancer Research, focusing on the role of the retinoblastoma protein in Drosophila development. In July 2012, she joined ABMG Training Program at the University of Chicago as a clinical cytogenetics fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Le Beau and Dr. Raca, in the Cancer Cytogenetics Laboratory and then as a clinical molecular genetics fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Das and Dr. del Gaudio in the Department of Human Genetics. Dr. Sukhanova joined the Cancer Cytogenetics Laboratory as the technical director in July of 2015.

Qudsia Arif, MBBS

Hematopathology Research Assistant 
Department of Pathology

My name is Qudsia Arif, and I’m the newest member of this amazing and dedicated team. For the past several years, I’ve been doing translational research on lung cancer and mesothelioma, where our goal was to transform discoveries in research into targeted innovative therapy for patients, and identify novel targets using human and animal tissues. I currently work in the department of Pathology at the University of Chicago, and I will contribute toward building tissue microarrays (TMAs) and reading and interpretation of IHC on lymphoma samples. I’m excited about building a lymphoma database in pathology that would help in conducting research experiments for several years to come.