Who We Fund

University of Wisconsin at Madison

I have been interested in basic and translational work related to cancer since my master’s resulting in a thesis on bone metastasis of breast cancer. Part of my PhD work explored the molecular mechanisms of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). I have studied the use of metformin, as an anti-cancer agent and demonstrated that metformin through activation of AMPK/ RUNX1/ SOCS3 axis and inhibition of glycolytic fluxes overcomes the imatinib resistance in CML patients. I joined Dr. Jing Zhang’s lab at the University of Wisconsin. Under her guidance, I had a chance to explore the molecular players involved in a subset of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with concurrent RAS and ASXL1 mutations, which define one of the worst AML prognosis groups. I have been actively collaborating with numerous investigators on and off campus to work on patient derived xenograft model for pre-clinical development of therapeutic approaches targeting both leukemia cells and suppressed T cells in NRAS; ASXL1 AML.

Project Title

Enhancing the cytotoxicity of T cells in NRAS; ASXL1-AML through combined inhibition of MEK and HDACs

University of Pittsburgh

My research is centered on pathophysiology of hematologic diseases such as bone marrow failure and leukemia, with specific focus on hematopoietic stem cell (HSC), DNA damage and immune response, and tumor microenvironment. I have been investigating HSC-BM niche interaction and HSC regeneration under conditions of injury and aging; and have identified functional interactions between certain factors implicated in cell proliferation, polarity, adhesion/migration, stem cell metabolism and aging. My work has led to 53 peer-reviewed scientific papers in high-impact scientific journals, including Blood, JCI, Nat Comm and Leukemia. I laid the groundwork for my long-term research by developing cell and animal models as well as effective assays for identifying mechanisms underlying critical hematological diseases as PI on several NIH- and private-funded grants. I am confident that both myself as a PI and my innovative research are highly competitive in future success in grants and publications.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

DNA damage, immune response, aging and leukemia

Fox Chase Cancer Center

I completed my Ph.D. training with Dr. Michelle Kelliher at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, studying the ubiquitin-dependent signal transduction pathways. With this foundation, I joined Dr. Louis Staudt’s laboratory at the National Cancer Institute as a research fellow in 2010 to exploit the roles of innate immune signaling and protein ubiquitination machinery in the pathogenesis of Diffuse Large B cell lymphoma. In 2015, I received an NCI Transition Career Development Award to further investigate the roles of immune signaling and protein ubiquitination in lymphoid malignancies. I accepted a tenure track faculty position and started my lab at Fox Chase Cancer Center (FCCC) as an Assistant Professor in May 2016. At FCCC, I decided to shift my studies to the field of Peripheral T-Cell lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma, which have minimal available targeted therapy options currently. The main focus of my laboratory is to understand the immune regulatory pathways in these lymphoid malignancies.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

Analysis and therapeutic targeting of the immune regulatory and ubiquitination pathways in Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma and Hodgkin Lymphoma

University of California, San Francisco

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

Towards Risk-Adapted Therapeutic Strategies in CNS Lymphoma

University of Colorado Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus

Dr. Craig T. Jordan is currently the Nancy Carroll Allen Professor and Chief of the Division of Hematology at the University of Colorado Denver.  He has been studying human leukemia stem cells for over 20 years, using molecular and genetic analyses to identify characteristics that may enhance targeted therapy for leukemia. Dr. Jordan completed his doctoral studies at Princeton University and then went on to perform post-doctoral studies at MIT’s Whitehead Institute. He has been an editorial board member for several journals including Cell Stem Cell, Leukemia, and PLoS Biology. Dr. Jordan has published over 150 peer-reviewed original research articles, review articles and book chapters. His honors include the Helen Hay Whitney Fellowship, the Stohlman Scholar Award from Blood Cancer United, the Wehrheim Professorship in cancer research, and the NCI Outstanding Investigator award.

Program Name(s)

Discovery

Specialized Center of Research Program

Project Title

Therapeutic targeting of AML stem cells 2023

Modeling LSC heterogeneity at unprecedented resolution in AML

Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope

Stephen J. Forman, MD, is a hematologist-oncologist, international expert in leukemia, lymphoma, and bone marrow transplant (BMT), and pioneer in immunotherapy. Dr. Forman has spent his 45-year career at City of Hope (COH), leading the Department of Hematology for 38 years and directing the Hematology Malignancies Research Institute since 2015. Under his leadership, COH developed one of the world’s largest and most successful BMT centers, which has led to dramatic increase in survival rates for blood cancers. He also directs the T cell Therapeutics Research Laboratories, the goal of which is to develop new ways to use the immune system to fight cancer. In this role, he leads a team of scientists in developing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-engineered T cells for treatment of a variety of cancers, including leukemia. Based on this research, Dr. Forman has led the advancement of multiple laboratory discoveries to the clinic, including CD19-directed CAR T cells for adults with leukemia.

Program Name(s)

Academic Clinical Trials Program (ACT)

Project Title

CD19-CAR T cells as Consolidation for Older Adults with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

I am a hematologic oncologist and cancer care delivery researcher. The focus of my research is to improve quality of life (QOL) and quality of care for patients with hematologic malignancies. I have designed, successfully applied for funding, and published many studies relating to health services and outcomes for patients with blood cancers. For example, I led the international validation of a QOL scale developed for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), the QUALMS, which has since been incorporated into several clinical trials and registries for patients with that disease. Additionally, I led a study using QOL assessment to help with transfusion decisions for patients with MDS, which is highly relevant to the final aim of my HCL 2030 proposal. I would be delighted to lead the team to complete the aims of the proposed research; moreover, the project will satisfy my goal to bring my research expertise to bear on the care that I provide for patients with hairy cell leukemia.

Program Name(s)

Hairy Cell Leukemia Research Initiative

Project Title

Quality of Life, Outcomes, and Decision Making for Patients with Hairy Cell Leukemia

University of Colorado Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus

I am a scientist of Indian origin who moved to the US upon completion of a Master’s in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology degree. I obtained my PhD in Cancer Biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, in the laboratory of Dr. Rob Welner. My PhD project focused on identifying basic mechanisms of drug resistance in blood cancer stem cells. This work culminated in 4 first author and 9 co-author publications. To gain experience in translational research, grant writing and mentoring, I am pursuing postdoctoral studies with Dr. Craig Jordan at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Here, I am leveraging my training in blood cancer and stem cell biology to identify new approaches for targeting malignant stem cells in myelodysplastic syndrome. This training will help me achieve my long-term goal of establishing an independent translational research program to improve outcomes for blood cancer patients and mentor students interested in pursuing a blood cancer research career.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

Nicotinamide metabolism is essential for myelodysplastic syndrome stem and progenitor cell function and survival

Stanford University

I am a physician-scientist and an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (BMT&CT). Clinically, I care for patients with high-risk lymphoma and other blood cancers. I am the principal investigator of clinical trials investigating novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies for the treatment of relapsed and refractory leukemia and lymphoma. These trials, in part, provide the critical and precious patient samples that are the subject of my laboratory-based research efforts. My research group is dedicated to understanding the clinical outcomes of our patients who receive these immunotherapies with the goal of improving clinical response while minimizing toxicity.

Program Name(s)

Academic Clinical Trials Program (ACT)

Project Title

Autologous CD22 CAR T cell Therapy for the Treatment of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

Washington University in St. Louis

Michael Kramer, M.D., Ph.D., is a medical oncologist specializing in the treatment of patients with blood cancers and the study of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). Dr. Kramer completed his M.D. and Ph.D. at the University of California-San Diego, where he worked with Dr. Trey Ideker to develop artificial intelligence-based methods to extract biological meaning from “big data”. He completed clinical training in Internal Medicine and Hematology / Oncology at Washington University in St. Louis. During post-doctoral time with Dr. Tim Ley, he studied how AML-causing mutations affect protein abundance, and has focused on identifying novel mechanisms for the treatment of AML patients with mutations in NPM1. Long term, Dr. Kramer intends to combine artificial intelligence tools and the experimental study of AML samples to understand how the AML-causing mutations affect protein interactions, and to find ways to target these abnormal interactions for the benefit of patients.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

Targeting oncogenic protein interactions in Acute Myeloid Leukemia with nucleophosmin (NPM1c) mutations

Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Christopher Hergott, M.D., Ph.D. is a postdoctoral fellow at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) and Associate Pathologist in hematopathology at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) in Boston. He obtained his undergraduate degree in Biochemistry from the University of Rochester and his medical and graduate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed residency (and chief residency) in Clinical Pathology and a clinical fellowship in Hematopathology at BWH before beginning his postdoctoral research training in the laboratory of Dr. Benjamin Ebert at DFCI. Christopher's research interests lie at the intersection of inflammation and hematopoiesis, with a particular focus on clonal hematopoiesis and its progression to myeloid malignancies. In his free time, Christopher enjoys playing guitar, reading, and travelling.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

Defining the role of IL-17A in propelling clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Fenghuang (Frank) Zhan, MD & PhD, is a Professor of Medicine and the Research Director of Myeloma Center at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). Frank’s research focuses on identifying treatment approaches to overcome drug resistance in multiple myeloma (MM) by using genomic, genetic, and immunological tools from a very large database of clinical samples and mouse models. Frank has published more than 170 peer reviewed papers. Many of his publications appeared in prestigious journals such as Science, NEJM, Cancer Cell, Blood, and J Clin Invest. As a principal investigator (PI), he has received many grants from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF), Blood Cancer United and NIH-NCI, etc. Frank received his PhD in Cancer Molecular Genetics and was then trained as a postdoctoral fellow and junior faculty at UAMS. Prior he returned to UAMS, he was an Associate Professor in the University of Utah, and then a Professor in the University of Iowa.

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

Toward improvement of BCMA/CST6-CAR-T therapy to target both myeloma cells and bone resorption