Robert P. Edwards, MD

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Robert P. Edwards, MD

Senior Vice President of Clinical Affairs, UPMC Health Plan; Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President, Community and Ambulatory Division of UPMC; Milton Lawrence McCall Professor and Chair, Department of Ob/Gyn/RS

Contact

UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital
300 Halket Street
Suite 2235
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Phone: 412‑641‑5411
Email: edwarp@upmc.edu

Administrative Contact
Cheryl Bailey
Email: baileyca2@upmc.edu

Area of Research

Women's Cancers

Education

Fellowship, Gynecologic Oncology, University of Alabama at Birmingham (1991-1993)

Postdoctoral Fellowship, Mucosal Immunology, UAB (1989-1991)

Residency, Department of OB-GYN and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh/Magee-Womens Hospital (1985-1989)

Internship, Department of Surgery, University of California, San Francisco (1985)

MD, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (1984)

My research focuses on better understanding of the role of host immunity in solid tumor development and disease regression including windows of opportunity to employ vaccines and immunotherapy more effectively.
Robert P. Edwards, MD

Research in Brief

Dr. Edwards is pioneering immune-based vaccines and targeted therapies to treat ovarian and cervical cancer. His clinical trials combine immunotherapy with surgery and chemotherapy in bold new treatment approaches—offering hope to women facing these cancers.

Current Projects

Phase I–II neoadjuvant loco‑regional chemo‑immunotherapy + alpha‑DC1 vaccine in recurrent ovarian cancer
Phase II single arm efficacy/safety trial that will evaluate the effectiveness of combining intensive locoregional intraperitoneal (IP) chemoimmunotherapy of cisplatin with IP rintatolimod (TLR-3 agonist) and IV infusion of the checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab (IVP) for patients with recurrent platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer (OC).

Selected Publications

NK Receptor Signaling Lowers TCR Activation Threshold, Enhancing Selective Recognition of Cancer Cells by TAA-Specific CTLs

Dong B, Obermajer N, Tsuji T, et al, Edwards RP, Storkus WJ, Romero P, Kalinski P. Cancer Immunol Res. 2024 Oct 1;12(10):1421-1437. doi: 10.1158/2326-6066.CIR-24-0061. PMID: 38949179

Characterization of Latently Infected EBV+ Antibody-Secreting B Cells Isolated from Ovarian Tumors and Malignant Ascites

Zhang L, Strange M, Elishaev E, Zaidi S, Modugno F, Radolec M, Edwards RP, Finn OJ, Vlad AM. Front Immunol. 2024 Jul 17;15:1379175. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1379175. PMID: 39086481.

A Framework for Diversifying Obstetrics and Gynecology Training Programs

Napoe GS, Parviainen KEL, Gosman GG, Olawaiye AB, Edwards RP. Obstet Gynecol. 2024 Feb 1;143(2):204-209. Doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000005467. Epub 2023 Nov 21. PMID: 37989143.

Phase I Trial Combining Chemokine-Targeting with Loco-Regional Chemoimmunotherapy for Recurrent, Platinum-Sensitive Ovarian Cancer Shows Induction of CXCR3 Ligands and Markers of Type 1 Immunity

Orr B, Mahdi H, Fang Y, Strange M, Uygun I, Rana M, Zhang L, Suarez Mora A, Pusateri A, Elishaev E, Kang C, Tseng G, Gooding W, Edwards RP, Kalinski P, Vlad AM. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 May 13;28(10):2038-2049. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-21-3659. PMID: 35046055.

Metformin and Survival: Is There Benefit in a Cohort Limited to Diabetic Women with Endometrial, Breast, or Ovarian Cancer?

Lemon LS, Orr B, Modugno F, Buckanovich RJ, Coffman L, Edwards RP, Taylor S.; Gynecol Oncol. 2022 Apr;165(1):60-66. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2022.01.022. Epub 2022 Feb 6. PMID: 35140015.

For additional publications, visit Pubmed.