Research Program Three:  Immunology and Cancer

Program Leaders:  Thomas F. Gajewski, MD, PhD

Overview and Scientific Goals

The overall goals of the Immunology and Cancer Program are to understand the interface between the host immune system and a malignant tumor and to manipulate that interaction to promote immune-mediated tumor destruction in patients with cancer. 

Although much of the immunotherapy field has moved forward quickly on the development of cancer vaccines, we maintain the view that it is important to explore the reasons for failure of the immune system to spontaneously reject most cancers from a more global perspective. Thus, in addition to optimizing T cell-based cancer therapeutics, our general perspective is that understanding all definable aspects of the immune response against tumors will be vital for clinical success. These insights will be guided by continued study of fundamental aspects of immune regulation, and thus a great degree of our effort lies in such basic immunologic studies. Our scientific goals, therefore, span the following domains:

  • fundamental investigations in immunology,
  • mouse models of anti-tumor immunity, and
  • novel immunotherapy clinical trials.

Observations in studies of basic immunologic concepts direct the design of preclinical and clinical studies, and observations made in early clinical studies have generated new hypotheses that are being addressed back in murine systems. Thus, the Immunology and Cancer Program has evolved into an important example of bi-directional translational research with ideas moving freely between bench and bedside.  There are currently 21 members in the Program derived from 7 departments working to achieve our Program goals.

Program Highlights 2005 - 2007

  • Members have published over 192 peer-reviewed cancer-related manuscripts. Many of these papers represent findings of critical importance, with over 33 of them published in the highest level journals (Science, Nature, Nature Immunology, Nature Medicine, Immunity, Journal of Experimental Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Journal of Clinical Investigation).
  • Hans Schreiber, MD, PhD has identified a novel type of tumor antigen recognized by the humoral immune response (Science 314:304, 2006)
  • Albert Bendelac, MD, PhD has identified several glycolipid antigens recognized by NKT cells (Nature 434:525, 2005). 
  • Dr. Schreiber, Yang-Xin Fu, MD, PhD, and Thomas Gajewski, MD, PhD, have uncovered a critical role for the tumor microenvironment in dictating the outcome of anti-tumor immune responses in vivo in both murine and clinical models (reviewed in Immunol Rev 213:131, 2006; Curr Opin Immunol 18:226, 2006).
  • Program investigators have been testing cancer vaccines against a variety of tumor types (melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, pancreatic cancer) in clinical trials.

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Links

Program 1
Cell Signaling and Gene Regulation
Program Leaders:Marsha Rosner, PhD and Suzanne Conzen, MD

Program 2
Molecular Genetics and Hematopoiesis
Program Leaders: Wendy Stock, MD and Michael Thirman, MD

Program 3
Immunology and Cancer
Program Leader: Thomas F. Gajewski, MD, PhD

Program 4
Clinical and Experimental Therapeutics
Program Leaders: Everett E. Vokes, MD and M. Eileen Dolan, PhD

Program 5
Advanced Imaging
Program Leaders: Maryellen L. Giger, PhD and Heber MacMahon, MD

Program 6
Cancer Risk and Prevention
Program Leaders: Olufunmilayo (Funmi) I. Olopade, MBBS and Andrea King, PhD