Human Oncology & Pathogenesis Program

The Nikolaus Schultz Lab

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Research

Nikolaus Schultz
Nikolaus Schultz, PhD
Director, Cancer Data Science Initiative; Head of Knowledge Systems, Marie-Josée & Henry R. Kravis Center for Molecular Oncology; Attending Computational Oncologist, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics

The Schultz lab focuses on identifying the genomic alterations that underlie different types of cancer. By applying existing and novel computational methods to large scale cancer genomics data sets, the lab aims to better understand the complex mechanisms at the gene and at the pathway level that drive tumor initiation, progression and response to therapy, with the ultimate goal of identifying targeted therapeutic options for cancer patients. A new focus of the lab is the systematic extraction and standardization of clinical data elements from electronic health records. The lab is also involved in collaborative large-scale projects such as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA),  AACR Project GENIE, and the Human Tumor Atlas (HTAN). The group also has a strong interest in enabling discoveries by developing novel computational methods and databases that help bridge the divide between computer scientists on one side and clinicians and researchers on the other. Examples of these include the cBioPortal for Cancer Genomics, a popular resource for the visualization and analysis of cancer genomics data, and OncoKB®, a precision oncology knowledgebase.

Nikolaus Schultz Lab

Featured News

colorful picture of cancer cells
The Mystery of Metastasis: Can a Tumor’s Genetic Mutations Predict Whether and Where Cancer Will Spread?

Data from 25,000 patients is helping scientists answer this and many other important questions.
Feature
Jianjiong Gao, Hongxin Zhang, Nikolaus Schultz, Debyani Chakravarty, and Sarah Suehnholz stand together on a terrace
A Milestone for Precision Oncology: FDA Gives Green Light to MSK’s Genetic Database

OncoKB, a database developed and maintained by investigators at MSK, helps match patients with targeted therapies based on the mutations found in their tumors.
In the Lab
Illustration of DNA base pairs
What Was MSK’s Role in TCGA, the Groundbreaking Cancer Genomic Study?

The multicenter project, which yielded dozens of scientific papers on more than 30 different kinds of cancer, has officially drawn to a close.

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Publications

Sanchez-Vega F, Mina M, Armenia J, Chatila WK, Luna A, La KC, Dimitriadoy S, Liu DL, Kantheti HS, Saghafinia S, Chakravarty D, Daian F, Gao Q, Bailey MH, Liang WW, Foltz SM, Shmulevich I, Ding L, Heins Z, Ochoa A, Gross B, Gao J, Zhang H, Kundra R, Kandoth C, Bahceci I, Dervishi L, Dogrusoz U, Zhou W, Shen H, Laird PW, Way GP, Greene CS, Liang H, Xiao Y, Wang C, Iavarone A, Berger AH, Bivona TG, Lazar AJ, Hammer GD, Giordano T, Kwong LN, McArthur G, Huang C, Tward AD, Frederick MJ, McCormick F, Meyerson M; Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network, Van Allen EM, Cherniack AD, Ciriello G, Sander C, Schultz N. Oncogenic Signaling Pathways in The Cancer Genome Atlas. Cell. 2018 Apr 5;173(2):321-337.e10. PMCID: PMC6070353.

Yaeger R, Chatila WK, Lipsyc MD, Hechtman JF, et al. Clinical Sequencing Defines the Genomic Landscape of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. Cancer Cell. 2018 Jan 8;33(1):125-136.e3.

Janjigian YY, Sanchez-Vega F, Jonsson P, Chatila WK, Hechtman JF, Ku GY, Riches JC, Tuvy Y, Kundra R, Bouvier N, Vakiani E, Gao J, Heins ZJ, Gross BE, Kelsen DP, Zhang L, Strong VE, Schattner M, Gerdes H, Coit DG, Bains M, Stadler ZK, Rusch VW, Jones DR, Molena D, Shia J, Robson ME, Capanu M, Middha S, Zehir A, Hyman DM, Scaltriti M, Ladanyi M, Rosen N, Ilson DH, Berger MF, Tang L, Taylor BS, Solit DB, Schultz N. Genetic predictors of response to systemic therapy in esophagogastric cancer. Cancer Discov. 2018 Jan;8(1):49-58. PMCID: PMC5813492.

Chakravarty D, Gao J, Phillips SM, Kundra R, et al. OncoKB: A Precision Oncology Knowledge Base. JCO Precis Oncol. 2017 Jul.

Cerami E, Gao J, Dogrusoz U, Gross BE, Sumer SO, Aksoy BA, Jacobsen A, Byrne CJ, Heuer ML, Larsson E, Antipin Y, Reva B, Goldberg AP, Sander C, Schultz N. The cBio Cancer Genomics Portal: An Open Platform for Exploring Multidimensional Cancer Genomics Data. Cancer Discov. 2012 May;2(5):401-4. PMCID: PMC3956037.

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People

Nikolaus Schultz

Nikolaus Schultz, PhD

Director, Cancer Data Science Initiative; Head of Knowledge Systems, Marie-Josée & Henry R. Kravis Center for Molecular Oncology; Attending Computational Oncologist, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics

  • Cancer biologist Nikolaus Schultz uses computational tools to study the diversity of genomic alterations underlying different cancer types.
  • PhD, Freie Universitat Berlin
[email protected]
Email Address
Download CV
PDF File

Members

Mirella Lorrainy Altoe

Research Fellow

Pranita Atri

Research Fellow

Craig Bielski, MS
Craig Bielski

WGS Student

Kevin Boehm
Kevin M. Boehm

Resident Physician, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY

Debyani Chakravarty

Assistant Attending; Lead Scientist, OncoKB

Walid Chatila
Walid Chatila

Graduate Student

Ino de Bruijn, Bioinformatics Engineer
Ino de Bruijn

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Christopher Fong, Research Scholar
Christopher Fong

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Benjamin Gross, MS
Benjamin Gross

Head of CMO Data Engineering

Joseph Kholodenko

Senior Computational Biologist

Christoph Kreitzer
Christoph Kreitzer

Graduate Research Assistant

Ritika Kundra, MS
Ritika Kundra

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Xiang Li
Xiang Li

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Aaron Lisman
Aaron Lisman

Lead Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Calvin Lu

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Anisha Luthra
Anisha Luthra

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Divya Madala

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Ramyasree Madupuri
Ramyasree Madupuri

Computational Biologist

Brooke Mastrogiacomo
Brooke Mastrogiacomo

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Subhiksha Nandakumar
Subhiksha Nandakumar

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Moriah Nissan
Moriah Nissan

Scientific Editor, OncoKB

Angelica Ochoa
Angelica Ochoa

Lead Engineer, SMILE

Sarah Phillips
Sarah Phillips

Senior Scientific Editor, OncoKB

Julia Rudolph
Julia Rudolph

Associate Director, CRC Initiatives

Francisco Sanchez-Vega
Francisco Sanchez-Vega

Assistant Attending

Baby Anusha Satravada

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Robert Sheridan
Robert Sheridan

Lead Bioinformatics Engineer

Hongyu Shi
Hongyu Shi
Selcuk Onur Sumer
Selcuk Onur Sumer

Software Engineer

Cerise Tang

WGS Graduate Student

Henry Walch
Henry Walch

Computational Biologist

Avery Wang

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Michele Waters

Senior Computational Biologist

Hongxin Zhang
Hongxin Zhang

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Gaofei Zhao

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Lab Alumni
Adam Abeshouse
Adam Abeshouse

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Joshua Armenia
Joshua Armenia

Research Fellow

Hsiao-Wei (Annice) Chen
Hsiao-Wei (Annice) Chen

Data Curator

Frederick Criscuolo

Computational Engineer

Jianjiong Gao, PhD
Jianjiong Gao

Assistant Attending

Zachary Heins
Zachary Heins

Bioinformatics Engineer

Konnor La
Konnor La

Graduate Student

Dong Li

Computational Engineer

Bastien Nguyen
Bastien Nguyen

Research Scholar

Arjun Raj Rajanna
Arjun Raj Rajanna

Bioinformatics Engineer

Eduard Reznik

Manager, Biocomputing

Shaleigh Smith
Shaleigh Smith

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Jing Su
Jing Su

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Yichao Sun, MS
Yichao Sun

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Jiaojiao Wang
Jiaojiao Wang

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Qingguo Wang
Qingguo Wang

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Yifu Yao

Bioinformatics Software Engineer

Lab Affiliations

Achievements

  • Geoffrey Beene Junior Faculty Chair (2019)
  • Josie Robertson Investigator (2013-2018)
  • Stupski Prize in Prostate Cancer Computational Oncology (2015)
  • Young Investigator Award, Prostate Cancer Foundation (2014)

Open Positions

To learn more about available postdoctoral opportunities, please visit our Career Center

To learn more about compensation and benefits for postdoctoral researchers at MSK, please visit Resources for Postdocs

Postdoctoral Researcher, Cancer Genomics – Schultz Laboratory Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

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Get in Touch

Disclosures

Doctors and faculty members often work with pharmaceutical, device, biotechnology, and life sciences companies, and other organizations outside of MSK, to find safe and effective cancer treatments, to improve patient care, and to educate the health care community.

MSK requires doctors and faculty members to report (“disclose”) the relationships and financial interests they have with external entities. As a commitment to transparency with our community, we make that information available to the public.

Nikolaus Schultz discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

  • Cambridge Innovation Institute
    Provision of Services (uncompensated)
  • Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
    Provision of Services (uncompensated)
  • Innovation in Cancer Informatics
    Provision of Services (uncompensated)
  • Seoul National University
    Provision of Services

The information published here is for a specific annual disclosure period. There may be differences between information on this and other public sites as a result of different reporting periods and/or the various ways relationships and financial interests are categorized by organizations that publish such data.

This page and data include information for a specific MSK annual disclosure period (January 1, 2021 through disclosure submission in spring 2022). This data reflects interests that may or may not still exist. This data is updated annually.

Learn more about MSK’s COI policies here. For questions regarding MSK’s COI-related policies and procedures, email MSK’s Compliance Office at [email protected].


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