Project Summary: Dr. Rhoades (formerly Sterling) is currently funded by a VA Merit award entitled “Reprograming tumor associated macrophages to induce anti-tumor immune responses in bone metastatic breast cancer.” She began in the VA in 2010 with a CDA and has maintained VA Merit funding since 2013. Her work seeks to identify novel therapeutic strategies to reduce tumor induced bone destruction from tumors that frequently spread to the bone. Once established these tumors disrupt normal bone remodeling leading to increased fractures and bone complications. Unfortunately, Veterans experience higher rates of invasive and metastatic tumors and reduced survival. They also have higher rates of bone diseases (from trauma, exposure, and other diseases) which can further complicate therapeutic intervention. Dr. Rhoades is a leader in the cancer and bone field and has dedicated her career to understanding interactions between tumors, bone, bone marrow and cancer therapies. Her goal is to identify novel approaches that can improve diagnosis, outcome predictions, and therapies that will ultimately improve Veteran quality of life and disease-free survival. Through this work, Dr. Rhoades has been funded by the DOD, NIH, and non-profit funding sources and has published her work regularly in well-respected bone and cancer journals. In addition, she is president of the Cancer and Bone Society, a co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Bone Oncology and actively participates in cancer and bone meetings and societies.