{"id":2352,"date":"2026-06-01T17:35:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T17:35:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2352"},"modified":"2026-06-01T17:35:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T17:35:36","slug":"moffitt-executive-resigns-leadership-role-after-investigation-of-her-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2352","title":{"rendered":"Moffitt executive resigns leadership role after investigation of her research"},"content":{"rendered":"
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TAMPA \u2014 The executive who oversees much of Moffitt Cancer Center\u2019s scientific research has resigned from her leadership role after science journals retracted or flagged concerns over the integrity of images used in several studies she co-authored.<\/p>\n

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Elsa R. Flores\u00a0has stepped down from her roles as division chief and associate center director of basic science at the cancer center, according to an email sent to senior staffers at Moffitt last week. It said that her decision was made for personal reasons and that she would remain a senior member of the\u00a0Department of Molecular Oncology\u00a0and focus on her research program.<\/p>\n

But her demotion comes after Flores\u2019 former employer, UT MD Anderson, a cancer center at the\u00a0University of Texas, recently completed a retrospective review of a number of studies she co-authored. Several papers had been questioned by scientists and others in online forums. Among their concerns were that images used to demonstrate findings appeared to have been manipulated.<\/p>\n

Moffitt officials declined to answer questions about Flores but emailed the following statement to the\u00a0Tampa Bay Times:<\/p>\n

\u201cMoffitt Cancer Center is committed to maintaining the highest levels of integrity in scientific research. All research at Moffitt is conducted in accordance with well-established standards supported by robust oversight, infrastructure and regulatory compliance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flores could not be reached by telephone. She did not respond to two emails requesting comment.<\/p>\n

Flores, who joined Moffitt in 2016, was\u00a0promoted to her leadership role\u00a0in\u00a0January 2022. Her position as the center\u2019s Basic Science Division meant she oversaw the cancer physiology, drug discovery, immunology, molecular oncology and tumor biology departments. She also played a pivotal role in applying for Moffitt\u2019s annual Cancer Center Support Grant as part of its top tier designation by the\u00a0National Cancer Institute.<\/p>\n

MD Anderson, where Flores worked as a professor for about 11 years, has yet to release any information regarding its review of her work. Officials there declined to answer questions about why they undertook the review, how it was conducted and its findings.<\/p>\n

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\u201cUT MD Anderson follows institutional processes for research reviews, and we do not comment on related matters,\u201d they said in an email.<\/p>\n

At least five studies that Flores co-authored have been either retracted, corrected or flagged by science journals that published them with an \u201ceditorial expression of concern.\u201d The formal notice is intended inform the scientific community that a published paper may contain serious, unresolved errors or misleading data.<\/p>\n

In four instances, the concerns related to images used to illustrate findings, with commenters on PubPeer, a widely used online platform that allows researchers to discuss scientific papers, highlighting examples where sections of images appeared to have been duplicated from elsewhere in the study.<\/p>\n

One study published in\u00a0Public Library of Science Genetics, was\u00a0retracted\u00a0because the data was \u201cmore similar than would be expected from experiments representing different conditions.\u201d It also noted part of an image was flipped horizontally and other \u201cdiscontinuities\u201d suggestive that images had been spliced together.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIn light of the concerns affecting multiple figure panels that question the integrity of these data, the PLOS Genetics Editors retract this article.\u201c<\/p>\n

Flores defended her work in a\u00a0response\u00a0she posted on PubPeer, saying that the image was not flipped as suggested.<\/p>\n

Another Flores study called into question is a\u00a02017\u00a0paper published in the\u00a0Journal of Clinical Investigation\u00a0that linked an RNA molecule called \u201cLnc-BM\u201d to the spread of breast cancer cells to the brain. The journal in October flagged the research online with an\u00a0expression of concern.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe Editors have requested an institutional investigation into this matter, and we will inform our readers of the outcome when the investigation is complete,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

Elizabeth Bik, an independent scientist and a former Stanford medical researcher who investigates and blogs full time about scientific integrity and research misconduct, posted on\u00a0PubPeer\u00a0questioning images in two different studies that Flores co-authored.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just one time, \u2018oospies, we made an error,\u2019\u201d Bik said in a telephone interview with the\u00a0Tampa Bay Times. \u201cIt\u2019s a pattern that is of concern.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also took to PubPeer to\u00a0question\u00a0a 2010 study published in Nature that included a photograph of a test mouse with a large tumor on its body.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tumor of this mouse looks very big, and it appears the skin is black and burst open. The mouse also looks skinny and in pain,\u201d she wrote. \u201cWere these experiments done according to appropriate animal ethics guidelines?\u201d<\/p>\n

Flores responded online to Bik\u2019s questions stating \u201cthat researchers followed\u00a0Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee\u00a0protocols approved by MD Anderson.<\/p>\n

Bik is not convinced.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnimals should be euthanized humanely if they reach that point that tumors are so big animals are in pain,\u201d she said in her interview with the\u00a0Times.<\/p>\n

In 2023, Nature added a note to its publication of\u00a0the study: \u201cReaders are alerted that the reliability of data presented in this manuscript is currently in question. Appropriate editorial action will be taken once this matter is resolved.\u201d<\/p>\n

An online correction to the article was later published by Nature.<\/p>\n

Moffitt\u2019s website\u00a0describes Flores as an \u201cinternationally recognized cancer researcher\u201d with specialized expertise in cancer causing proteins that are deemed \u201cundruggable\u201d or extremely difficult to target with medication.\u00a0The Flores Lab\u00a0at Moffitt also conducts research into the p53 family of genes, found in many human cancers.<\/p>\n

Flores has proven adept at obtaining\u00a0National Institute of Health\u00a0grants. She was the principal investigator or project leader on dozens of research projects that received a combined $21 million since 2009,\u00a0NIH\u00a0data shows.<\/p>\n

She also played a key role in Moffitt being\u00a0awarded $10.2 million\u00a0from the\u00a0National Cancer Institute\u00a0in 2021 to develop lung cancer treatments.<\/p>\n

John Cleveland, a Moffitt executive vice president, will take over Flores\u2019s position as associate center director. Her role as division chief will be handled by\u00a0Kenneth Wright, Moffitt\u2019s associate center director of research education and training.<\/p>\n

\u00a92026 Tampa Bay Times. Visit\u00a0tampabay.com. Distributed by\u00a0Tribune Content Agency, LLC.<\/p>\n

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The executive who oversees much of Moffitt Cancer Center\u2019s scientific research has resigned from her leadership role after science journals flagged concerns over several studies she co-authored.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2351,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nMoffitt executive resigns leadership role after investigation of her research - Orlando Relocation Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2352\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Moffitt executive resigns leadership role after investigation of her research - 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