Who We Fund

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

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Dr. Urvi Shah is an Assistant Attending in the Myeloma Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She is board certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology and received a Master of Science degree in Clinical and Translational Cancer Research. Her research interests include modifiable risk factors (diet, metabolism, microbiome) in cancer. She completed the first pilot nutrition trial in plasma cell disorders to date (NUTRIVENTION) and has 3 other dietary trials enrolling. Dr. Shah has been supported by career development awards (National Cancer Institute [NCI] K12, International Myeloma Society and American Society of Hematology [ASH] Scholar) and research awards (ASH CRTI, ECOG ACRIN Young Investigator Translational Research, Henry Moses, Celgene Future Leaders in Hematology, NCI Early Investigator Advancement Program and Clinical Cancer Research Early Career). She has published papers in prominent journals and has been an invited speaker and chair.

Program Name(s)

Academic Clinical Trials Program (ACT)

Project Title

A Decentralized Randomized High-Fiber Dietary Trial to Improve Outcomes in Newly Diagnosed Myeloma

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Dr. Soheil Meshinchi is a physician scientist and a Full Member at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, as well as Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine. With over 25 years of experience in AML biology, he chairs the COG Myeloid Disease Biology Committee and the NCI designated Hematopoietic Integrated Science Center (HM-ITSC) to help translate laboratory discoveries into clinical practice. He leads the novel target and biomarker discovery for the LLS Children’s Initiative and the Pediatric Acute Leukemia (PedAL) efforts. As the director of NCI TARGET AML initiative and the Target Pediatric AML (TpAML), , he has led multi-omic studies of over 3000 children and young adults; Studies including Whole Genome Sequencing, Transcriptome sequencing, miRNA sequencing, Methylation profiling as well as the ongoing long read RNA sequencing to fully define splice isoforms in normal and malignant hematopoiesis.

Program Name(s)

Academic Clinical Trials Program (ACT)

Specialized Center of Research Program

Project Title

Multi-modal Immunotherapeutic Targeting of AML-restricted Targets in Infants and Children

First in Human Mesothelin-Directed Artemis CART in Childhood AML

TAP Partner

Dimericon is a private biotech company focused on exploring crosslinked helix dimers (Dimericons) as therapeutics and templates for small molecule development. Dimericon’s technology targets hard-to-drug intracellular protein-protein interactions using rationally designed mimetics of helix dimers. The Seed round of financing will support preclinical studies to further develop the current cFLIP inhibitor lead compound, DMRX1004, to be an IND ready clinical candidate in hematological malignancies.

Program Name(s)

Therapy Acceleration Program

Project Title

Supporting development of dimericons (crosslinked helix dimers) for blood cancers

University of Cambridge

George Vassiliou is Professor of Hematological Medicine, Director of the Blood Cancer United/Blood Cancer UK Specialist Center of Research (SCOR) in Myeloid Cancer Prevention and Co-lead of the Hematological Malignancies Virtual Institute at the University of Cambridge. He is also an Honorary Consultant Hematologist at Cambridge University Hospitals, where he founded and leads Europe’s first clonal hematopoiesis clinic. 

He studies the pre-clinical evolution, molecular pathogenesis and treatment of myeloid cancers. Highlights of his work include the co-discovery of the shared precursor of myeloid cancers, clonal hematopoiesis (CH), the description of its lifelong natural history and the first demonstration that individuals at risk of these cancers can be identified years in advance, opening the prospect of their prevention. He also developed the first genomic diagnostic tools for myeloid cancers, discovered mechanisms of how they develop and identified hundreds of potential treatment targets using the first genome-wide CRISPR genetic screen in any human cancer. His work has led to development of new treatments, including METTL3 inhibitors that are now in clinical trials against acute myeloid leukemia.

In recognition of his work, he was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and awarded the European Haematology Association Research Excellence Award in 2026.

Program Name(s)

Specialized Center of Research Program

Project Title

Development of a clinical program for myeloid cancer prevention

University of Colorado Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus

Terry Fry, MD, is a professor of pediatrics, hematology and immunology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. He is the chair of the Gates Institute Advisory Board and holds the Charles C. Gates Endowed Chair in Regenerative Medicine. He arrived at Colorado in 2018 after serving as head of the Hematologic Malignancies Section in the Pediatric Oncology Branch at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he led efforts in cellular immunotherapy for pediatric leukemia. Prior to the NIH, Dr. Fry was chief of Blood and Marrow Transplantation at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. His research focuses on the preclinical and clinical development of chimeric antigen receptor T cells for pediatric cancers. He serves on the Committee for Scientific Affairs for the American Society of Hematology, is vice chair for biology in the Cellular Therapy Committee of the Children’s Oncology Group, and was elected into the American Society for Clinical Investigation.

Program Name(s)

Academic Clinical Trials Program (ACT)

Project Title

A phase 1 study of anti-CD64 CAR T cells in patients with venetoclax-refractory myeloid neoplasms

The University of Melbourne

I am an Assoc. Prof. and Group Leader at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre (Peter Mac; Melbourne, Australia). I formed my group in 2018 and my research program is focused upon enhancing the effectiveness of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells, a form of immune therapy where a patient’s own immune cells are genetically engineered to recognize and kill tumor cells. I have published numerous seminal papers and research metrics place me in the top 1% of researchers in my field. Despite being a PI for just 5 years, I have already led 1 CAR T clinical trial and I am currently developing a second trial with a technology developed in my lab in 2020.

Previously my focus has been on using CAR T to treat cancers such as breast and lung cancer. However, recent clinical data indicates that CAR T cells have significant potential in multiple myeloma. Therefore, this project will be a key strategic enabler, allowing me to apply approaches developed in my lab to this disease.

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

Enhancing the “fitness” of anti-BCMA CAR T cells for improved efficacy in multiple myeloma

The University of Melbourne

Professor Dawson is the Associate Director for Research Translation, a Program Head in Laboratory Research and a Consultant Haematologist at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. His research interest is studying the role of epigenetic regulators in the initiation, maintenance and progression of cancer. His current research spans cell and molecular biology, functional genomics, cancer immunology, chemical biology and clinical translation. He is the Sir Edward Dunlop Fellow for the Cancer Council of Victoria and a HHMI International Research Scholar. In recognition of his research achievements, he has been elected to the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences and an EMBO member. He has received several prestigious awards including the McCulloch & Till Award from the International Society of Experimental Haematology, the Jacques Miller Medal from the Australian Academy of Science and the Prime Minister’s Prize as Life Scientist in 2020.

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

Understanding molecular determinants of immune evasion to CAR-T cells at single clone resolution

The University of Sydney

I am Head of the Cancer and Stem Cell Laboratory, and my research has been focused on leukemia stem cell biology and targeted therapies in the past 15 years. I have an extensive background in leukemia research, with specific training and expertise in stem cell biology, patient-derived preclinical models, CRISPR-genome editing, and single-cell multi-omics. As PI on several NHMRC-funded grants, I laid the groundwork for the proposed research by uncovering new therapeutic targets and mechanisms, and by establishing partnerships with industry that will enable personalized therapies into clinical application. I successfully administered the projects (e.g. staffing, research protections, timeline, budget), collaborated with researchers, and produced publications from each project in leading scientific journals (e.g. Cancer Cell, Blood). The current application builds logically on my prior work. I have the expertise, leadership, and motivation necessary to successfully carry out this project.

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

Strategic combinations to overcome therapeutic resistance and relapse in acute myeloid leukemia

Washington University in St. Louis

John F. DiPersio MD, PhD is the Golman Professor of Medicine and Director of The Center for Gene and Cellular Immunotherapy at the Washington University School of Medicine. His research has focused on targeting key elements of the hematopoietic niche for optimal stem cell mobilization and chemosensitization, mitigating GvHD in T cell replete transplants, understanding the genomic alterations in AML, and developing and testing in the clinic novel therapeutics and immuno-therapeutics, including cellular therapies, for the treatment of AML, ALL, T/B-NHL and multiple myeloma. Dr. DiPersio was instrumental in the development and FDA approval of Plerixafor, Motixafortide, and Ruxolitinib. He is the recipient of multiple awards and was past president of the ASTCT and member of the NCI Board of Scientific Counselors. He has authored or co-authored more than 490 publications, is a co-founder of two companies (WUGEN and Magenta) and holds multiple patents.

Program Name(s)

Translational Research Program

Project Title

KT1, a novel NK trispecific antibody for the treatment of AML and MDS

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Dr. Adi Nagler received her Ph.D. at the Weizmann Institute of Science in 2021, under the mentorship of Prof. Yardena Samuels. There, she spearheaded studies that identified intra-tumoral intracellular bacterial peptides eliciting an immune response by melanoma-infiltrating lymphocytes, suggesting a novel source of antigens within tumors (Kalaora & Nagler Nature 2021). As a postdoctoral fellow in Prof. Catherine Wu’s lab, she is studying the impact of the microbiome on T cell response in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) following allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). She is applying spatial transcriptomics methodology together with characterization of the immunopeptidome of BOS tissue specimens to define the role of bacterial presented peptides in the pathogenesis of this devastating complication of HCT. Overall, her studies aim is to explore the potential link between T cell antigen specificity to these microbial peptides and initiation and propagation of BOS.

Program Name(s)

Career Development Program

Project Title

The microbiome-induced immune response role in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome following allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation

City of Hope National Medical Center

Dr. Siddiqi is an associate professor in the Department of Hematology/Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation and Director of the chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) program at COH. As an active member of the Toni Stephenson Lymphoma Center and the Immunotherapy Center at COH, she has been the institutional and, for some studies, national principal investigator of many phase 1, 2 and 3 clinical trials involving novel targeted therapies and cellular therapeutics such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells in CLL and non-Hodgkin lymphomas. She works closely with Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program (CTEP), cooperative groups, and pharmaceutical companies on important clinical trials in order to bring novel, potentially lifesaving, therapeutics to our patients. As of June 1, 2021, she will be the Lymphoma Medical Director at the Irvine campus, set up open August 2022, which puts her in an ideal position to open impactful hematology clinical trials at CAN sites, starting with Orange county.

Program Name(s)

IMPACT

Project Title

Establishing Hematology Clinical Trial Hubs within the City of Hope Community and Affiliate Network