James C. Yao

James C. Yao, MD is Professor and Chair of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center, one of the world's leading NET clinical and research programs. He is a co-investigator on multiple pivotal trials that transformed the systemic treatment of advanced NETs in the 2010s, including the RADIANT series and concurrent regulatory-enabling studies. His research has focused on the mTOR and VEGF pathways as therapeutic targets in NETs, leading clinical development programs at the intersection of translational science and global clinical trials. Dr. Yao's work on the RADIANT-2 trial evaluated everolimus plus octreotide LAR in functional NETs, and his broader contributions to the RADIANT program spanned patient selection, biomarker analysis, and outcome data that collectively supported multiple FDA approvals. He has also extensively studied chromogranin A, neuron-specific enolase, and genomic biomarkers as prognostic and predictive tools in NET management, publishing benchmark studies that inform biomarker use in clinical guidelines. Internationally recognized as a NET thought leader, Dr. Yao is a past chair of the ASCO GI Tumors Committee, a member of multiple NCCN and ESMO NET guideline panels, and a frequent grand rounds and congress speaker. He has authored over 300 publications and mentored a generation of NET clinician-investigators.