My laboratory is focused on understanding how nests of tumor cells, termed Minimal Residual Disease, or MRD, can survive for a sustained period of time in a dormant state after chemotherapy. Our work has led to the identification of specific tissue microenvironments that promote the survival of tumor cells after treatment. By understanding how these anatomical sites protect cancer cells, we have been able to develop strategies to resensitize tumors to front-line chemotherapy. Importantly, metastatic disease shows many of the characteristics of MRD. Hence, our work should lead to novel strategies to sensitize drug-resistant metastatic cells to existing therapies.