Elena Gostjeva

Background and Experience

Dr. Elena V. Gostjeva earned her Ph.D. from the Vavilov Institute of Genetics (Moscow) in 1986 and soon joined a Chernobyl radiobiological expedition, where she advanced human tissue preparation and AI-driven microscopic imaging. In 1994, she led the “Genetic Risk Assessment of Chernobyl Fallout” group at Kiev Polytechnic Institute, collaborating with Swedish experts on radiation safety. Teaming with William G. Thilly, she discovered metakaryotic stem cells—bell-shaped, amitotically dividing cells central to fetal/juvenile growth, wound healing, and cancer. They found these cells resist standard chemo and radiation treatments yet respond to common drugs like NSAIDs, antibiotics, and antihypertensives. Early clinical studies at the Medical College of Wisconsin suggest these findings may offer promising new strategies against cancers such as pancreatic cancer.