Dr. Walko received her PharmD from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and worked as a research assistant at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Insitute. She completed her pharmacy practice residency at the Medical College of Virginia and her hematology and oncology specialty residency at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also completed her academic fellowship in Hematology and Oncology Pharmacotherapy at the University of North Carolina. 

She joined the faculty in 2006 as a clinical assistant professor. She is the course coordinator of the Hematology and Oncology Pharmacotherapy Module taught in the fall of PY3 and the elective Advanced Hematology and Oncology course.  She continunes to practice as a clinical pharmacist at the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center clinic.  Additionally, she collaborates with the LCCC investigators to pursue oncology-based research in translational pharmacology, Phase I/II trials, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacogenomics