While Brugge was completing her undergraduate degree in biology, she became interested in tumor virology, which refers to the study of how viruses can affect and in some cases produce cancerous cells.
[6][7] This focus led her to the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, which housed one of the only virology programs in the country at the time.
These discoveries were major breakthroughs in cancer research, as v-SRC and c-Src were the first viral and cellular oncoprotein identified and paved the way to subsequent studies on the mechanism of oncogenic transformation.
[15] After five years in industry, however, Brugge chose to return to the academic world in order to place a bigger focus on her own research.
"[6] Her lab focuses on elucidating the cellular processes and signaling pathways that are involved in the initiation and progression of epithelial tumors, primarily of the breast and ovary.