Weiss Lab Members

Vivian Weiss, M.D., Ph.D. is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Weiss attended Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD to obtain her M.D. and Ph.D. in immunology. During her Ph.D. training, Vivian received the American Association for Cancer Research Pre-doctoral Fellowship Award for her work in tumor immunology under the mentorship of Dr. Elizabeth Jaffee. After completing this training, she began the Vanderbilt University Pathology Residency Training Program for anatomic and clinical pathology, followed by a fellowship in cytopathology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She is board certified in Anatomic Pathology, Clinical Pathology, and Cytopathology. Her clinical practice focuses on the diagnosis of fine needle aspirations, particularly of the thyroid. Vivian’s translational research laboratory studies the molecular and microenvironmental drivers of pediatric and adult thyroid cancer to improve the current diagnostic algorithms and therapy for this disease. 

Courtney is originally from Tuscumbia, Alabama. She attended the University of North Alabama in Florence, Alabama and graduated in December 2018 with her bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology and Chemistry. She joined the Weiss lab in January of 2019. 

Matt is originally from Salem, OR. He attended the College of Wooster in Wooster, OH and graduated with his bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Matt joined the Weiss lab in November of 2020 and is currently studying the role of cancer-associated fibroblasts and Wnt signaling in thyroid cancer progression. He’s particularly interested in using novel technologies to generate and analyzing spatial data sets (e.g., multiplex IF, RNAscope, spatial transcriptomics) that will help us better understand the drivers of disease aggression in anaplastic thyroid cancer. In his free time, Matt loves music, sports (basketball, tennis, golf, Quidditch), and hanging out at Nashville breweries.

Megan is an MSTP student from Henderson, Kentucky. She moved to upstate New York for college in 2012. After obtaining a biochemistry degree at Colgate University, she spent 2.5 years at the National Cancer Institute at the NIH in Bethesda, Maryland doing research on heat shock proteins in prostate cancer. She loves to travel and spent several months in South America before starting medical school at Vanderbilt. She is interested in pediatrics, immunology, and cancer research. Outside of school and work, she enjoys being outdoors, hiking, camping, going to breweries with friends, and exploring Nashville restaurants. 

Heather grew up in Wisconsin and California. After graduating the College of Wooster in 2021 with a BA in Spanish and Chemistry, She became a QCB student at Vanderbilt University in the fall of 2021. The following spring she joined the Molecular Pathology and Immunology program as a member of Dr. Vivian Weiss's lab. In the Weiss lab, she is currently studying the role of Tenascin-C in the Wnt Signalsomes. Outside of lab you can find her doing yoga, hiking, and baking. 

Diana is originally from Fort Myers, Florida. She attended Florida Gulf Coast University and earned a bachelor’s in biology and a minor in chemistry. Diana joined the Weiss lab in August 2023 and is obtaining a Master’s in biomedical science.