Dr. Tomlinson is board certified in pediatrics and pediatric hematology-oncology. Her clinical interests are in guiding individuals and families who may be at risk for cancer because of genetic predisposition and leads a multi-site program working with individuals and families throughout South Texas. Her research background is in the genetics and biology of liver tumors in children. She has recently initiated an investigation of predisposing factors underlying the increased incidence of leukemia in children of Hispanic background in South Texas and maintains a growing registry and biobank for children and adolescents with cancer. She has served on multiple national and state committees focusing on advancing research, education, and advocacy in childhood cancer and has published over 180 scientific papers. She currently is a member of the National Cancer Institute’s Board of Scientific Counselors.

Dr. Tomlinson received her M.D. from George Washington University School of Medicine and her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Duke University. She completed an internship and residency at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. She did a research fellowship in cancer genetics at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, followed by a formal fellowship in pediatric hematology-oncology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. She was a faculty member at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from 1992 to 2006, where she was a tenured Associate Professor and held the Children’s Cancer Fund Distinguished Professorship in Pediatric Oncology Research.