Mary Tolikas

Mary Tolikas, PhD, MBA, is the Senior Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a position she assumed on April 1, 2022.1 In this role, she leads Dana-Farber's efforts to accelerate innovations by collaborating with investigators to identify promising discoveries and forming alliances to expedite the translation of scientific research from the laboratory to clinical applications.1

Professional Background

Prior to joining Dana-Farber, Dr. Tolikas held several notable positions:

• Chief Executive Officer at Wyss Center for Bio & Neuroengineering in Geneva, Switzerland1
• Operations Director at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, where she played a crucial role in its launch and growth over nearly a decade1
• Executive Director for Special Projects at the Office of the Provost, Harvard University1
• Co-instructor in the Masters in Design Engineering Program at Harvard1
• Director of Business Development at Ansoft Corporation1

Education

Dr. Tolikas has an impressive educational background:

• B.Eng. in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from the University of Glasgow, Scotland1
• M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)1
• MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT1

Recent Developments

In November 2023, Dr. Tolikas was appointed to serve on the CancerX steering committee, further expanding her influence in the field of cancer research and innovation.2

Dr. Tolikas's extensive experience in establishing and growing technology-based organizations in both industry and academia makes her well-suited for her role at Dana-Farber. Her leadership is expected to be instrumental in advancing the institute's work in accelerating cancer research and improving patient care.1