Melissa Boneta Davis, PhD, is the Founding Director of the Institute of Translational Genomic Medicine and Professor of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Immunology at Morehouse School of Medicine. She also serves as a Georgia Research Alliance Distinguished Investigator and Team Lead for the Cancer Grand Challenge’s SAMBAI (Societal, Ancestry, Molecular and Biological Analyses of Inequities) program, a groundbreaking global initiative designed to unravel the complex social, environmental, ancestral, and biological drivers of cancer inequities.

An internationally recognized expert in cancer genomics and disparities, Dr. Davis previously served as Scientific Director of the International Center for the Study of Breast Cancer Subtypes (ICSBCS), Director of Health Equity for the Englander Institute of Precision Medicine, and Associate Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology in Surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine. She is also a Cancer Ethnicity Scholar and Associate Faculty at the New York Genome Center, where she co-led the PolyEthnic-1000 project, advancing genomic discovery in diverse and admixed populations.

Dr. Davis earned her PhD in Molecular Genetics from the University of Georgia and completed postdoctoral training in Functional Genomics and Systems Biology at Yale School of Medicine and the University of Chicago, including specialized training in cancer health disparities at the Interdisciplinary Center for Health Disparities under the mentorship of leading scholars in the field.

Her pioneering research established the field’s foundational concepts linking genetic ancestry to aggressive tumor phenotypes, particularly among populations across the African diaspora. Dr. Davis’s seminal discoveries on the DARC/ACKR1 locus, ancestry-associated immune regulation, and tumor microenvironment biology have reshaped understanding of breast cancer heterogeneity—especially triple-negative breast cancer—and informed emerging precision oncology strategies for historically marginalized populations.

As Team Lead for SAMBAI, Dr. Davis directs a multidisciplinary global consortium spanning Africa, the U.S., and the U.K., integrating genomics, exposomics, sociopolitical determinants, immunology, and patient engagement to confront cancer inequities at scale. Her leadership also extends across numerous national committees and advisory boards, including the NIH/NCI Cancer Genomic Sequencing External Advisory Panel, the AACR Minorities in Cancer Research Council (current Chair), and multiple international cancer equity initiatives.

Dr. Davis is widely sought as a keynote speaker and thought leader on cancer biology, ancestry-informed genomics, and health equity. Her work has been continuously supported by the NIH, BCRF, and major national foundations and has appeared in top-tier journals including Cancer Discovery and Scientific Reports. Her research, mentorship, and advocacy collectively reflect a mission to ensure that scientific innovation equitably improves outcomes for all populations.