The John B Charles Memorial Lecture was added to the Human Research Program Investigators' Workshop (HRP IWS) program starting in 2024 to highlight up-and-coming scientists in the human spaceflight life sciences research community. The 60-minute plenary presentation will be given annually and allows for a deeper dive into the crucial research impacting the success of NASA's missions. Presenters are nominated by the Human Research Program Elements and the final selection is made by the IWS Steering Committee. Dr. Shubhankar Suman was selected to give the plenary presentation at the 2026 HRP IWS.

The title for Dr. Suman's presentation is From Accelerated Aging to Cancer and Neuroinflammation: Senescence as a Central Driver of Space Radiation Health Risk. 

Dr. Shubhankar Suman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Oncology, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. He is a radiation biologist whose research focuses on understanding and mitigating the human health risks associated with space radiation exposure. With more than 15 years of experience in radiation biosciences, his work centers on radiation stress signaling, high-LET (space-relevant) radiation biology, and the mechanisms linking radiation-induced cellular damage to accelerated aging, carcinogenesis, and central nervous system dysfunction.

Dr. Suman’s laboratory has made significant contributions to elucidating how galactic cosmic radiation and other high-charge, high-energy (HZE) particle exposures induce multi-tissue cellular senescence, a unifying biological mechanism driving lifespan reduction, cancer risk, and neuroinflammation. His team has also advanced pharmacological and genetic senolysis strategies aimed at mitigating radiation-induced degenerative and carcinogenic outcomes, contributing to countermeasure development for long-duration deep space missions. He serves as Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator on multiple federally funded projects supported by NASA, NIAID (NIH), the Department of Defense (DOD), and the Department of Energy (DOE). His research integrates mechanistic molecular biology, animal models, and translational countermeasure approaches to reduce radiation health risks relevant to both astronauts and patients receiving radiotherapy.

Dr. Suman has published more than 65 peer-reviewed articles and has received several prestigious honors, including the Radiation Research Society’s Scholar-in-Training (SIT) and Early Career Investigator (ECI) Awards, as well as the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Scholar-in-Training Award. He serves as a standing and ad hoc member of federal grant study sections, contributes to PhD thesis advisory and examination committees, and sits on editorial boards for peer-reviewed journals. He is also a frequent reviewer for leading journals in radiation biology, oncology, and space health research. An invited speaker at numerous national and international conferences, Dr. Suman continues to advance understanding of space radiation–induced health risks and to develop innovative mitigation strategies.

For the John B Charles Memorial Lecture, his presentation will highlight the central role of radiation-induced systemic senescence in lifespan reduction, carcinogenesis, and neuroinflammation, and will discuss emerging senolytic countermeasures designed to safeguard human health during deep space exploration.