Dr. Flanagan’s passion for medical science is deeply influenced by her family background. Born in the United States to an Irish father who gained American citizenship through his service in the U.S. Army, her family moved back to Ireland shortly after her birth. They planned to settle in Ireland long-term. However, due to increasing political unrest known as “the Troubles” in the late 1980s, they returned to the U.S. just before Dr. Flanagan started kindergarten. This early experience of mobility and exposure to different cultures would later influence her approach to global health challenges. Her mother, a registered nurse for 46 years before the onset of a devastating rapidly progressive dementia, was a graduate of the Academy of Our Lady in Mount Greenwood, Chicago, a high school run by the School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND). This connection to a community dedicated to education and service profoundly shaped Dr. Flanagan’s career path, instilling in her a commitment to compassion and excellence in health care. The loss of her mother to dementia in July 2023 after a seven-year battle with the disease marked a deeply personal tragedy for Dr. Flanagan. During her mother’s illness, Dr. Flanagan served as her primary caregiver and held power of attorney, confronting firsthand the challenges that families face when dealing with neurodegenerative diseases. This personal experience has further fueled her dedication to her research and her determination to find better treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Dr. Flanagan’s commitment to neuropathology began during her undergraduate years at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she was introduced to microscopy and histopathology in the cytotechnology training program. Her passion for clinical research was further ignited at PRACS Institute, East Grand Forks, Minnesota, and Fargo, North Dakota, engaging in drug interaction and bioequivalence studies. These early experiences solidified her resolve to pursue a career in medical research. Opting to study overseas, Dr. Flanagan attended Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, benefiting from her dual Irish and American citizenship. Her medical school research project focused on the B-Raf proto-oncogene mutation in papillary thyroid carcinoma. During her first clinical rotation in geriatric medicine, she interacted with dementia patients and their families, which heightened her awareness of the disease’s complexities. This became deeply personal when her father was diagnosed with dementia, an event that occurred shortly before his passing in 2012 during her medical school years. Additionally, the loss of her mother to dementia in July 2023, has only deepened Dr. Flanagan’s dedication to her research and her commitment to discovering more effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Upon returning to the United States, Dr. Flanagan completed an anatomic pathology residency at the University of Washington, Seattle. There, she developed a cost-effective brain autopsy protocol that adhered to the National Institute on Aging and Alzheimer’s Association guidelines, reducing costs by over 70% while preserving diagnostic breadth of the original guidelines. She then advanced to a neuropathology fellowship at Stanford University, Stanford, California, where she refined Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease panels for the multiplexed ion beam imaging quantitative platform, enhancing the study of brain pathologies. Her tenure at Stanford was supported by a National Institutes of Health career development supplement through the university’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. As the Acting Neuropathology Core Leader at Stanford’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center under her mentor Dr. Thomas Montine’s supervision, Dr. Flanagan spearheaded the development of a novel brain banking protocol and collaborated with other prominent neuropathology cores at institutions such as Rush University, Chicago; University of California San Francisco; and the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

Currently, Dr. Flanagan directs a leading-edge research laboratory at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. Her team employs a multidisciplinary approach, integrating quantitative molecular platforms, biomarker development and the synthesis of biostatistics with epidemiological assessments. She also serves as neuropathology core leader for the federally funded South Texas Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, directs the Bigg’s Institute Brain Bank, serves as the lead neuropathologist for the Honolulu Asia Aging Study and oversees the iconic Nun Study on Aging and Alzheimer’s disease. In her role with the Nun Study, Dr. Flanagan meticulously correlates brain autopsy findings with cognitive and physical assessments from the participants’ lifetimes, aiming to elucidate the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Her contributions have led to numerous significant publications that offer new insights into the interplay between brain pathologies, lifestyle factors and genetics in the development of neurodegenerative diseases.

Dr. Flanagan is at the forefront of digital pathology in dementia and aging focused research. She plays a crucial role in a groundbreaking initiative aimed at connecting multiple Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centers to enhance and standardize advanced analytics for whole slide images. She is working with collaborators to generate a federated platform to facilitate efficient and streamlined data sharing and analyses of human digital neuropathological slides created from brain autopsy samples. This involves the development of an open-source platform that aggregates data from multiple repositories into a central registry portal, employing the FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable) principles. She is also developing and validating artificial intelligence pathology tools. This work optimizes these tools, specifically their diagnostic and research capabilities. Through Dr. Flanagan’s leadership in these cutting-edge efforts, she is helping to shape the future of neuropathological research by leveraging digital technology to improve the accuracy and efficiency of diagnoses and enhance the understanding of neurodegenerative diseases.

Through her extensive research, teaching and leadership roles, Dr. Flanagan continues to significantly advance our understanding of Alzheimer’s and related neurodegenerative diseases, informing the development of future interventions and enhancing patient care. This journey, enriched by her mother’s legacy and her own diverse experiences, exemplifies her commitment to making a meaningful impact in the field of neuropathology.