Paolo Tarantino, 2025 Yvonne’s “Top Voice” Award Winner, Clinical Research Fellow at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Visiting Professor at McGill University, shared a post on LinkedIn by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, adding:
“In this Thanksgiving week, I want to express my deepest gratitude to the many people who helped make my dream job a reality.
From the inspired mentoring of Giuseppe Curigliano, who transformed a young medical school graduate into a passionate oncologist and researcher; to the constant support of Sara Tolaney, whose first question when we met was, “What do you dream of working on?”. I owe so much of my path to their guidance.
My gratitude also goes to all the terrific colleagues and friends I encountered on my path between IEO Istituto Europeo di Oncologia and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, many of whom have shaped my thinking and growth over the years.
THANK YOU!”
Quoting Dana-Farber Cancer Institute‘s post:
“As a child, Paolo Tarantino, MD, PhD, used to travel the world to attend scientific conferences with his father – those trips sparked his curiosity and passion for science and medicine.
“I loved that world as a kid and, to this day,” says Tarantino, an advanced fellow in the Breast Oncology Center. “My father would take me to the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting in Chicago, and I would get lost in the medical acronyms, and in the labyrinthic McCormick (I still do, sometimes). Yet, those early congress experiences did light up something in me – a spark that would turn into a fire later in life.”
After completing his medical studies at the University of Naples Federico II, Tarantino wanted to help unlock unknown areas in biology and cancer, leading him to complete a medical oncology fellowship and a PhD in clinical research at the University of Milan.
“I had the chance to work with breast cancer expert Giuseppe Curigliano, who was my mentor in Milan. Working by his side meant being involved in multiple early-phase trials with innovative drugs, some of which have resulted in tremendous advancements in cancer care over the last decade. However, one class of drugs ignited my interest more than any other, given its fascinating complexity and tremendous promise: antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)”.
Tarantino’s work on ADC trials helped shape his trajectory in oncology, leading to a commitment to improving outcomes for metastatic breast cancer through the development of better ADCs and innovative biomarkers.
“At that point, I realized that one cancer center was the epicenter of a lot of the innovation in ADCs for treating breast cancer. At the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Sara Tolaney, MD, MPH, was conducting adjuvant trials of T-DM1 for the curative treatment of HER2+ breast cancer, and multiple additional studies testing novel ADCs were ongoing or being planned. A powerful magnetic force attracted me to Boston in 2021, where I had the opportunity to start a research fellowship in the Breast Oncology Division of Dana-Farber.”
Tarantino has dedicated himself to both clinical and translational efforts, developing and leading clinical trials with ADCs. These efforts allowed him to chair the ADC session at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in 2024, and at the ESMO – European Society for Medical Oncology Congress 2025.
“We’re at a turning point in the development of ADCs. After proving that they can help extend the survival of patients with metastatic disease, ADCs are now showing the potential to cure early-stage cancers. It’s a brave new world, full of hope. It’s rare in life to end up doing exactly what you dreamed of,” Tarantino says. “Yet somehow my research dreams came true — and I couldn’t be more grateful for the mentoring, sponsorship, and support that made this possible.”
You Can Also Read: Oncologist Near Me – Paolo Tarantino: Shaping the Future of Breast Cancer Treatment
