Elizabeth McDonald, MD PhD, is an Associate Professor of Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine. She is Co-Director of the Penn Breast Cancer Translational Research Group (BCTRG), a bench to bedside multi-disciplinary team committed to advancing the science of breast cancer care while training the next generation of translational researchers. As part of her leadership for this group, Dr. McDonald actively mentors undergraduate and medical students, residents, and post-doctoral fellows embarking on an academic career. BCTRG is also committed to introducing high school students in Philadelphia to medical research careers through a partnership with Women’s Campaign International.

Dr. McDonald’s clinical roles include the Penn Breast Cancer Clinical Steering Committee and Director of Breast MRI for the University of Pennsylvania. As Affiliate Faculty for the Penn Center for Cancer Care Innovation, she also focuses on care delivery and reducing disparities in health care. Dr. McDonald has co-authored over 72 manuscripts and book chapters, nearly all involving breast imaging and tumor characterization, and published in journals such as JAMA Oncology, JCI Insight, Radiology, Journal of Clinical Oncology and Cancer Research. She received a B.A. in Biochemistry magna cum laude from Harvard University and went on to complete medical school, graduate school, residency, and fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. She has received multiple awards for her scholarship including being recognized as American Roentgen Ray Society Scholar and Cooper Scholar for the Abramson Cancer Center. She has been a Fellow in the Society of Breast Imaging since 2017 and was inducted into the “Council of Distinguished Investigators” by the Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research in 2022.