CV

Education

M.D., Lebanese University, 2023
Bachelor’s Degree in Piano Studies, Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music, 2021

Work experience

Spring 2024: Academic Pages Collaborator
- GitHub University
- Duties includes: Updates and improvements to template
- Supervisor: The Users
Fall 2015: Research Assistant
- GitHub University
- Duties included: Merging pull requests
- Supervisor: Professor Hub
Summer 2015: Research Assistant
- GitHub University
- Duties included: Tagging issues
- Supervisor: Professor Git

Skills

Skill 1
Skill 2
- Sub-skill 2.1
- Sub-skill 2.2
- Sub-skill 2.3
Skill 3

Publications

Integrative Clinical and Molecular Evaluation of Renal Cell Carcinoma with Merlin Protein Deficiency and Biallelic Loss of NF2

Yekedüz E, Bian W, Siegmund SE, Machaalani M, El Masri J, Saleh M, Saad E, Ascione L, El Halabi R, Steiner C, Mourad P, Berg SA, McGregor B, Mantia C, Ravi P, Xu W, Hirsch MS, Choueiri TK, Serzan M. Integrative Clinical and Molecular Evaluation of Renal Cell Carcinoma with Merlin Protein Deficiency and Biallelic Loss of NF2. Clinical Cancer Research. 2026. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-25-2871.

Soluble MAdCAM-1 as a biomarker in metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Alves Costa Silva C†, Machaalani M†, Saliby RM†, Zhong C, Xie W, Pasolli E, Piccinno G, Dalban C, Fidelle M, Meurisse A, Vernerey D, Lee GS, Birebent R, Saad E, Steiner C, Flippot R, Barros-Monteiro J, Segata N, Thiery-Vuillemin A, Formenti S, Kuznetsova T, Escudier B, Derosa L, Zitvogel L, Albiges L. Soluble MAdCAM-1 as a biomarker in metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Nature Medicine. 2026. doi:10.1038/s41591-025-04067-x. †Equal contribution.

Molecular and clinical insights of trastuzumab deruxtecan efficacy in advanced breast cancer

Nassar AH, Bou Farhat E, Abushukair H, Alchoueiry M, Salem S, Machaalani M, Adib E, Henske E, Babu P, Choueiri TK, Rakaee M, Busund LTR, Takabe Y, Lau SF, Rall K, Naqash AR, Jansen C, Wang X, Challa P, Tarantino P, Partridge AH, Tolaney SM, Kwiatkowski DJ, Winer EP. Molecular and clinical insights of trastuzumab deruxtecan efficacy in advanced breast cancer. JNCI. 2025. doi:10.1093/jnci/djaf344.

Targeting of HIF2-driven cachexia in kidney cancer

Abu-Remaileh M, Stransky LA, Bhalerao N, Shirole NH, Jiang Q, Saad E, Machaalani M, Vigeant SM, Woldemichael H, Xu C, Lu J, Wei H, Liu Z, Sun W, Enomoto K, Choueiri TK, Pitarresi JR, Carr SA, Udeshi ND, Kaelin WG Jr. Targeting of HIF2-driven cachexia in kidney cancer. Nat Med. 2025. doi:10.1038/s41591-025-04054-2.

The SLC1A1/EAAT3 dicarboxylic amino acid transporter is an epigenetically dysregulated nutrient carrier that sustains oncogenic metabolic programs

Grubb T, Koochaki P, Matar S, Ghandour F, Machaalani M, Saad E, Tang C, Reznik E, Khatun J, Salem C, Dubasik N, Orlando DA, Guenther MG, Parajuli G, Srivastava RM, Martinez SR, Coker JA, Kotecha RR, Hakimi AA, Asara JM, Chan TA, Vanharanta S, Stauffer SR, Kaelin WG Jr, Signoretti S, Choueiri TK, Chakraborty AA. The SLC1A1/EAAT3 dicarboxylic amino acid transporter is an epigenetically dysregulated nutrient carrier that sustains oncogenic metabolic programs. Nat Commun. 2025;16(1):10012. doi:10.1038/s41467-025-64983-x.

MLH1 mismatch repair deficiency predicts exceptional response to immune checkpoint inhibition in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma

Dawidek MT, Posada Calderon L, Shah PK, Mittal R, Agridag Ucpinar B, Bakouny Z, Meli K, Saad E, Saliby RM, Woo HJ, Khandwala YS, Eid M, Labaki C, Machaalani M, Coleman J, Russo P, Kotecha RR, Carlo MI, Akin O, Braun DA, Choueiri TK, Reznik E, Chen YB, Motzer RJ, Voss MH, Hakimi AA. MLH1 mismatch repair deficiency predicts exceptional response to immune checkpoint inhibition in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma. Eur Urol. 2025. doi:10.1016/j.eururo.2025.09.4162.

Targeting AXL can effectively overcome c-Met-induced therapeutic resistance in renal cancer and promote tumor cell death through increased oxidative stress

Sabarwal A, Machaalani M, Rawat L, Wedel J, Tabasum S, Sasamoto Y, Buerger F, Ascione J, Eid M, Semaan K, Saad E, Yang Y, Lee D, Hodi FS, Freedman ML, Lee GSM, Balan M, Choueiri TK, Pal S. Targeting AXL can effectively overcome c-Met-induced therapeutic resistance in renal cancer and promote tumor cell death through increased oxidative stress. Cancer Lett. 2025;633:217984. doi:10.1016/j.canlet.2025.217984.

Tumor-Intrinsic and Microenvironmental Determinants of Impaired Antitumor Immunity in Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma

Labaki C, Saad E, Madsen KN, Hobeika C, Bi K, Alchoueiry M, Camp S, Hou Y, Bakouny Z, Matar S, El Ahmar N, Nyman J, Zhang L, Priolo C, Rout R, Daou M, Khabibullin D, Salem S, Schindler N, Saliby RM, Meli K, Wells C, Pimenta E, Takemura K, Marji J, Eid M, Sarlemi K, Xu J, Denize T, El Hajj Chehade R, Machaalani M, Nawfal R, Khattoun W, Saleh M, El Masri J, Haddad NR, Xu W, McGregor BA, Hirsch MS, Yilmaz R, Cheng DY, McDermott DF, Signoretti S, Romee R, Choueiri TK, Braun DA. Tumor-Intrinsic and Microenvironmental Determinants of Impaired Antitumor Immunity in Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma. J Clin Oncol. 2025;43(23):2639-2654. doi:10.1200/JCO-25-00234.

Comorbidity burden and effectiveness of immunotherapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Yekeduz E, Zarba M, Saad E, El Hajj Chehade R, Eid M, Saliby RM, Steiner C, Machaalani M, Nawfal R, Semaan K, Ürün Y, Heng DYC, Choueiri TK. Comorbidity burden and effectiveness of immunotherapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Clin Genitourin Cancer. 2025;23(4):102385. doi:10.1016/j.clgc.2025.102385.

International Medical Graduates Representation at International Oncology Conference Meetings: An Analysis of ASCO Annual Meetings

Roy AM, Bakouny Z, Dizman N, Paul MA, Ozay ZI, Lal BM, Nawfal R, Eid M, El Hajj Chehade R, Machaalani M, Butt A, Aggarwal C, Bekaii-Saab T, Chavez-MacGregor M, Lopes G, Marshall A, Murphy M, Owonikoko T, Xie W, Lee AJ, Choueiri TK. International Medical Graduates Representation at International Oncology Conference Meetings: An Analysis of ASCO Annual Meetings. JCO Oncol Pract. 2025;OP2500067. doi:10.1200/OP-25-00067.

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors for Patients With Preexisting Autoimmune Neurologic Disorders

Fletcher K, Machaalani M, El Hajj Chehade R, Nassar AH, Nawfal R, Manos M, Menzies AM, Aboubakar-Nana F, Hasse JC, Pinato DJ, Johnson A, Olsson-Brown AC, Carlino MS, Malgieri A, Cortellini A, Singh A, Parikh K, Kim SY, Naqash AR, Long GV, Challa P, Choueiri TK, Sharon E, Shah S, Johnson DB. Immune checkpoint inhibitors for patients with preexisting autoimmune neurologic disorders. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(6):e2513727. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.13727.

KIM-1 as a prognostic marker in renal cell carcinoma

Steiner C†, Machaalani M†, Bonventre JV, McDermott DF, Choueiri TK, Xu W. KIM-1 as a prognostic marker in renal cell carcinoma. Eur Urol Focus. 2025;11(3):432-435. doi:10.1016/j.euf.2025.06.012. †Equal contribution.

AXL signaling in cancer: from molecular insights to targeted therapies

Yadav M, Sharma A, Patne K, Tabasum S, Suryavanshi J, Rawat L, Machaalani M, Eid M, Singh RP, Choueiri TK, Pal S, Sabarwal A. AXL signaling in cancer: from molecular insights to targeted therapies. Signal Transduct Target Ther. 2025;10(1):37. doi:10.1038/s41392-024-02121-7.

Progressive natural killer cell dysfunction in advanced-stage clear-cell renal cell carcinoma and association with clinical outcomes

Xu W, Birch G, Melki A, Moritz V, Bharadwaj M, Schindler NR, Labaki C, Saliby RM, Dinh K, Horst JT, Sun M, Kashima S, Hugaboom M, Dighe A, Machaalani M, Lee GS-M, Hurwitz M, McGregor BA, Hirsch MS, Shukla SA, McDermott DF, Signoretti S, Romee R, Choueiri TK, Braun DA. Progressive natural killer cell dysfunction in advanced-stage clear-cell renal cell carcinoma and association with clinical outcomes. ESMO Open. 2025;10(2):104105. doi:10.1016/j.esmoop.2024.104105.

Liquid biopsy in renal cell carcinoma

Machaalani M, Eid M, Semaan K, El Hajj Chehade R, Nawfal R, Baca SC, Choueiri TK. Liquid biopsy in renal cell carcinoma. Oncologist. 2024;29(10):821-823. doi:10.1093/oncolo/oyae230.

TERT Promoter Mutations Frequency Across Race, Sex, and Cancer Type

El Zarif T†, Machaalani M†, Nawfal R†, Nassar AH, Xie W, Choueiri TK, Pomerantz M. TERT Promoter Mutations Frequency Across Race, Sex, and Cancer Type. Oncologist. 2024;29(1):8-14. doi:10.1093/oncolo/oyad208. †Equal contribution

Cancer research activity in the Arab world: a 15-year bibliometric analysis

Machaalani M, El Masri J, El Ayoubi LM, Matar B. Cancer research activity in the Arab world: a 15-year bibliometric analysis. J Egypt Public Health Assoc. 2022;97(1):26. doi:10.1186/s42506-022-00120-6.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Toward Cardiovascular Diseases in the Lebanese Population

Machaalani M, Fakhry B, Zwaideh M, Mendelek K, Mahmoud N, Hammoud T, Chahine MN. Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Toward Cardiovascular Diseases in the Lebanese Population. Global Heart. 2022;17(1):47. doi:10.5334/gh.1138.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Toward Hypertension Among Hypertensive Patients Residing in Lebanon

Machaalani M, Seifeddine H, Ali A, Bitar H, Briman O, Chahine MN. Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Toward Hypertension Among Hypertensive Patients Residing in Lebanon. Vasc Health Risk Manag. 2022;18:541-553. doi:10.2147/VHRM.S367187.

Overcoming Therapy Resistance in Colon Cancer by Drug Repurposing

El Zarif T, Yibrin M, De Oliveira-Gomes D, Machaalani M, Nawfal R, Bittar G, Bahmad HF, Bitar N. Overcoming Therapy Resistance in Colon Cancer by Drug Repurposing. Cancers (Basel). 2022;14(9):2105. doi:10.3390/cancers14092105.

Contribution of Arab World in Transplant Research: A PubMed-Based Bibliometric Analysis

El Ayoubi LM, El Masri J, Machaalani M, El Hage S, Salameh P. Contribution of Arab World in Transplant Research: A PubMed-Based Bibliometric Analysis. Transpl Immunol. 2021;68:101432. doi:10.1016/j.trim.2021.101432.