Jennifer B. Valerin
Biography
Jennifer B. Valerin, M.D., Ph.D., is Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of California, Irvine. She received her M.D. from George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and her Ph.D. in Clinical and Translational Research from UT Houston at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Her research focuses on pancreatic cancer, particularly mechanisms of resistance to PARP inhibition and the development of genomic signatures for homologous recombination deficiency.
Valerin has served as principal investigator on multiple cooperative group clinical trials through SWOG and ECOG-ACRIN, including studies of immunotherapy combinations in melanoma and treatment strategies for pancreatic cancer patients with germline BRCA mutations. Her translational research has been supported by the NIH Clinical Loan Repayment Program Award and the American Society for Clinical Oncology Conquer Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award. She has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles on topics including microsatellite instability in colorectal cancer, germline mutations in pancreatic cancer, and immunotherapy in hepatobiliary malignancies.
Valerin serves as Co-Leader of the Hepatobiliary Disease Oriented Team at UC Irvine and represents the institution on multiple University of California Cancer Consortium committees, including the Pancreatic Cancer Committee and Molecular Tumor Board Steering Committee. She is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Association of Cancer Research, and the Medical Oncology Association of Southern California. She has served as a grant reviewer for the Department of Defense Pancreatic Cancer Research Program since 2021.
Return to topEducation
- B.S. in Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, 2003
- M.D., George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, 2009
- Ph.D. in Clinical and Translational Research, UT Houston at MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2019
Distinctions
- American Society for Clinical Oncology Conquer Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award, 2015-2016
- 23rd Annual AACR Workshop: Molecular Biology in Clinical Oncology, 2014
- Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society, 2008-2009
- American Association for Cancer Research Basic Science Research Fellowship, 2015
- Waun Ki Hong Award for Achievement in Basic Science Research, 2015
- Children's Hospital of Los Angeles Summer Oncology Fellowship Program, 2006
- Commendation for Excellence in Medical Student Teaching, 2009-2012
- Tauber Holocaust Memorial Scholarship for Medicine, 2007-2009
- Zonta Club of Washington DC- Edith SeVille Coale Scholarship, 2006-2007
Areas of Expertise
- Translational Cancer Genomics
- Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma Treatment
- Hereditary Cancer Syndromes
- PARP Inhibitor Resistance Mechanisms
- Homologous Recombination Deficiency Signatures
- Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy
- Digital PCR Biomarker Development
Recent Publications
- Slaught M.J., Kaakour D., Azizi A., Kroening G., Chen W.-P., Mar N., Valerin J.B., “Patterns of immune-related adverse events in patients treated for various cancer types with immune checkpoint inhibitors” (opens in new tab), Future Oncology, vol. 22, pp. 37-43, 2026.
- Singer M, Valerin J, Zhang Z, Zhang Z, Dayyani F, Yaghmai V, Choi A, Imagawa D, Abi-Jaoudeh N, “Promising Cellular Immunotherapy for Colorectal Cancer Using Classical Dendritic Cells and Natural Killer T-cells” (opens in new tab), Cells, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 166, 2025.
- Dayyani, Mahadevan A, Valerin J, “Replacing Liposomal Irinotecan with Standard Irinotecan in Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: Should We Follow Suit and Substitute Without Dispute?” (opens in new tab), Pancreas, vol. 54, pp. e637-e638, 2025.
- Zhang S., Hasan N., Han J., Kroening G., Jutric Z., Afsari A., Attarian S., Valerin J., “A camouflaging mystery: solid-tubulocystic variant of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma” (opens in new tab), Human Pathology Reports, vol. 42, 2025.
- Ross C, Marciano N, Nathan D, Chen W, McLaren C, Osann K, Flodman P, Cho M, Lee F, Dayyani F, Zell J, Valerin J, “Hereditary Cancer Clinics Improve Adherence to NCCN Germline Testing Guidelines for Pancreatic Cancer” (opens in new tab), Jnccn Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, vol. 22, no. 5, pp. 299, 2024.
- Marciano N, Kroening G, Dayyani F, Zell J, Lee F, Cho M, Valerin J, “BRCA-Mutated Pancreatic Cancer: From Discovery to Novel Treatment Paradigms” (opens in new tab), Cancers, vol. 14, no. 10, pp. 2453, 2022.
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Last updated on 6/15/2026.