FDA grants breakthrough therapy designation of new TIL therapy for advanced cervical cancer
In May 2019, the FDA granted breakthrough therapy designation to a tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy technology known as LN-145 to treat advanced cervical cancer based on data presented by CCR collaborator Iovance Biotherapeutics. Read more...
Jonathan Hernandez discusses surgical oncology with Behind the Knife podcast
Jul 2, 2019
Jonathan Hernandez, M.D., Investigator in the Surgical Oncology Program, was recently featured in a Behind the Knife podcast. During the episode, Dr. Hernandez discussed the surgical oncology match process and his research on ex vivo tissue preservation to study tumors. The full podcast is available online. Read more...
Sarcoma Awareness Month
Jul 1, 2019
July is Sarcoma Awareness Month and we are highlighting our researchers who are advancing research discovery in this field. Read more...
Clinical trial tests immunotherapy combination to treat T-cell cancers
Jun 28, 2019
The Center for Cancer Research’s Lymphoid Malignancies Branch is testing a combination treatment for patients whose mature T-cell cancer has returned after therapy or has not responded to therapy using avelumab, an immunotherapy agent that enhances the activity of immune cells and blocks a protein pathway that allows cancer cells to hide from the immune system. Read more...
Clinical trial will test immunotherapy against precancerous vulvar lesions
Jun 27, 2019
Scientists at the Center for Cancer Research are launching a phase II clinical trial to evaluate the effect of a single immunotherapy treatment on precancerous lesions that put women at risk for vulvar cancer. Like the cell-based immunotherapies now used to treat certain blood cancers, the experimental treatment aims to use patients’ own immune cells to fight disease. Read more...
Gastrointestinal tumors harbor T cells that recognize patients’ unique tumor antigens
Jun 25, 2019
CCR scientists, led by Steven A. Rosenberg, M.D., Ph.D., have determined that many common gastrointestinal tumors bear mutations capable of eliciting an immune response, suggesting that immunotherapy could be an effective way to treat these common cancers. Read more...
Research shows long noncoding RNA influences expression of key HIV receptor
Jun 24, 2019
New research from the Center for Cancer Research has identified a long noncoding RNA that influences the expression of CCR5, a receptor that HIV uses to infect immune cells. The finding points to the molecule as a potential marker that indicates a patient’s susceptibility to the virus. Read more...
Pediatric Oncology Branch patient shares neurofibromatosis journey at NIH
Jun 18, 2019
Xavier, a patient in the Pediatric Oncology Branch, was born with an incompletely formed leg bone and a large number of dark spots all over his body. When Xavier broke his weak leg at only 11 months of age, he was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). He came to the NIH for treatment, and his tumors have shrunk by more than 20 percent thanks to treatment with selumetinib. Read more...
Akt protein kinase pathway regulates key step in the initiation of cilia formation
Jun 13, 2019
CCR investigators have discovered that activating the Akt protein kinase pathway stabilizes the binding of the WDR44 protein to the Rab11 protein. This prevents Rab11 from binding to the Rabin8 protein, thereby blocking cilia formation. When Akt is inactive, though, Rab11 instead is bound by FIP3, enhancing its binding to Rabin8, which helps initiate cilia formation. Since abnormalities in cilia formation are associated with a number of types of cancer, these findings point to several potential targets for cancer therapy. Read more...
Registration now open for Cancer and Inflammation: From Micro to Macro
Jun 12, 2019
The Cancer and Inflammation: From Micro to Macro conference, hosted by the CCR Center of Excellence in Immunology, will take place October 17-18, 2019. This two-day national symposium addresses recent advances in the field and should be an exciting forum for discussion and debate on the current understanding of cancer and inflammation. Read more...
CCR fellows receive Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO Young Investigator Awards
Jun 11, 2019
Congratulations to Vid Leko M.D., Lekha Mikkilineni, M.D., and Chen Zhao, M.D., for receiving the Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO Young Investigator Award (YIA). The YIA provides funding to promising investigators to encourage and promote quality research in clinical oncology. The purpose of this grant is to fund physicians during the transition from a fellowship program to a faculty appointment. Read more...