Dr. Tesfay is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). He earned his undergraduate degree from Alemaya University in Ethiopia, a master’s in Molecular Biology from the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium, a master’s in Biological Sciences from Northern Illinois University, and a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport. He completed postdoctoral fellowships in the Department of Molecular Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and at UAMS. He also has experience as a senior scientist at Imanis Life Sciences.
Dr. Tesfay’s research focuses on translational Immunovirotherapy for patients with advanced hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) cancers and aims to reduce health disparities in cancer treatment and research.
Dr. Tesfay is a recipient of the ASGCT fellowship and the K12 scholar award, and is developing virotherapy treatments for solid tumors, particularly pancreatic and liver cancers. He has received travel awards from the NIH, NIDDK, and the American Society for Virology. He is actively involved in the Africa HepatoPancreatoBiliary Cancer Consortium and is a member of societies including SITC, AACR, and ASGCT.