image: Susan Bullman, Ph.D., receives TAMEST Mary Beth Maddox Award for breakthrough tumor microbiome research
Credit: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
HOUSTON, NOVEMBER 5, 2026 ― Susan Bullman, Ph.D., associate professor of Immunology and Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, has received the 2027 Mary Beth Maddox Award and Lectureship from the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology (TAMEST) in recognition of her contributions to understanding how bacteria within tumors influence cancer development, treatment response and immune function.
Established in 2022 in honor of Mary Beth Maddox, former executive director of TAMEST who died after a battle with pancreatic cancer, the Mary Beth Maddox Award and Lectureship recognizes innovative cancer researchers whose work is advancing new approaches to understanding and treating cancer.
“I am honored to receive this award and grateful to my lab, colleagues, collaborators and the patients whose participation has made this research possible,” Bullman said. “We are learning how bacteria within tumors interact with cancer cells and the immune system, and how those interactions affect treatment. We believe this work can give us new ways to make therapies more effective, whether by targeting bacteria that help cancer resist treatment or by finding ways to use bacteria themselves to treat cancer. What motivates and excites me is the possibility of turning these discoveries into new treatment options for patients.”
Bullman is an associate member of UT MD Anderson’s James P. Allison Institute™ and serves as affiliated faculty director of Host-Microbe Interactions within the institution’s Platform for Innovative Microbiome and Translational Research (PRIME-TR).
Her research has helped establish that bacteria found within tumors can play active roles in cancer biology, expanding scientific understanding of how microbial communities influence tumor growth, responses to therapy and interactions with the immune system.
Among her notable discoveries, Bullman demonstrated that Fusobacterium nucleatum, a bacterium associated with colorectal cancer, can accompany cancer cells from primary tumors to metastatic sites. Her research also provided evidence in preclinical models that targeting these bacteria may reduce tumor burden, highlighting potential links between the microbiome and cancer progression.
Since establishing the Bullman Laboratory at UT MD Anderson, Bullman has combined spatial multi-omics, single-cell technologies and laboratory models to investigate how bacteria are distributed within tumors and how those microbial communities affect cancer cell behavior and anti-tumor immune responses. Her team also developed INVADEseq, a single-cell sequencing method designed to simultaneously profile host cells and intracellular microbes, providing researchers with a new tool to study host-microbe interactions. Also, in collaboration with the Johnston Laboratory, her group identified a distinct lineage of the oral bacterium Fusobacterium nucleatum that is enriched in colorectal tumors. At UT MD Anderson, the team is now harnessing its tumor-homing ability to develop bacteria-based cancer therapies.
“Dr. Bullman is one of the leading scientists shaping our understanding of the tumor microbiome, and this award reflects the significance of her contributions to the field,” said Albert Koong, M.D., Ph.D., chief scientific officer at UT MD Anderson. “She is an innovative scientist, a valued collaborator and a dedicated mentor whose work continues to advance our understanding of cancer biology and improve the lives of patients.”
Bullman’s research program has been supported by multiple National Cancer Institute grants and a Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas Rising Star Award. She also holds a U.S. patent related to technologies targeting tumor-infiltrating bacteria and was named to the TIME100 Next list in 2025 as an influential rising star.
She will be recognized at the TAMEST 2027 Annual Conference: Frontiers of Discovery in February 2027 and will participate in a statewide lecture series at National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers across Texas.
“I am proud to have nominated Dr. Bullman for this award and pleased to see her contributions recognized,” said James P. Allison, Ph.D., regental professor and chair of Immunology, and founding director of the Allison Institute. “She has a remarkable ability to identify important scientific questions and pursue them with creativity and rigor, exemplifying the kind of bold, curiosity-driven science that changes how an entire field thinks.”