Matthew Vander Heiden, M.D., Ph.D.

Matthew Vander Heiden is an institute member at the Broad Institute and the director of MIT's Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. He is also a professor in the Koch Institute and the Department of Biology at MIT, and an instructor of medicine at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School.

Vander Heiden is interested in understanding cancer cell metabolism. One of the first changes noted between cancer cells and normal cells is a difference in metabolism. Vander Heiden hypothesizes that this metabolic difference may provide insight into how cells, including cancer cells, convert nutrients into the chemical components they need to proliferate. Specifically, he is working to identify the biochemical pathways cells use to meet the metabolic requirements of cell proliferation. In addition, he utilizes mouse models to elucidate how metabolic regulation impacts tissue metabolism in a physiological context and to translate the biochemical understanding of cancer metabolism into better cancer therapies.

Vander Heiden received his M.D. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He also completed his clinical training in internal medicine and medical oncology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute prior to completing post-doctoral research at Harvard Medical School.