Jessica M. Pastoriza, MD | Montefiore Einstein

About

Jessica M. Pastoriza, MD, is a breast surgeon at Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center and Assistant Professor, Surgery at our Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Pastoriza’s clinical focus is in breast surgical oncology. She has a particular interest in breast cancer disparities, seeking to better understand the underlying mechanisms of the gap in breast cancer survival seen among patients of different racial backgrounds.

In 2009, Dr. Pastoriza received her Bachelor of Science in interdisciplinary studies in biochemistry and molecular biology from the University of Florida. She began her medical education at Montefiore Einstein, completing her Doctor of Medicine in 2013, followed by a general surgery internship in 2014, a research fellowship in surgical oncology in 2017 and a general surgery residency in 2020. She then pursued a fellowship in breast surgical oncology at Johns Hopkins Hospital, from 2020 to 2021.

Dr. Pastoriza's research interests involve studying cancer dissemination and metastasis as well as the changes to the tumor microenvironment with exposure to systemic treatments. She studies how different currently used therapies affect the tumor microenvironment breeding for a more resistant tumor phenotype over time, specifically looking at a novel tumor marker called Tumor Microenvironment of Metastasis (TMEM) doorways that have been shown to be sites of intravasation and increase in number in the setting of residual tumor burden after chemotherapy. She has also performed work looking at breast cancer disparities. Dr. Pastoriza is currently investigating the changes neoadjuvant endocrine therapy induces on the tumor microenvironment to better understand therapy resistance. She has shared her research through publication in peer-reviewed journals and presentations at regional and national conferences.

Dr. Pastoriza is a member of several professional associations including the National Hispanic Medical Association, the American Society of Breast Surgeons and the Society of Surgical Oncology.

Gender: Female