
Kathryn A. Lurain, M.D., M.P.H.
- Center for Cancer Research
- National Cancer Institute
- Building 10, Room 6N110
- Bethesda, MD 20892-1868
- 240-858-3257
- kathryn.lurain@nih.gov
RESEARCH SUMMARY
Dr. Lurain is an Assistant Research Physician in the HIV/AIDS Malignancy Branch. She is an expert in the treatment of a variety of HIV-associated cancers, including those caused by the Kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV). Her primary research is based in the clinic and is focused on the development of new treatments for primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) and other KSHV-associated diseases. She is an advocate for people living with HIV and their inclusion in clinical trials.
Areas of Expertise
1) primary effusion lymphoma 2) viral oncology 3) multicentric Castleman disease 4) HIV-associated lymphoma 5) Kaposi sarcoma
Information for Patients
Learn more about our clinical trials and the highly specialized care teams that lead them.

Kathryn A. Lurain, M.D., M.P.H.
Clinical Trials
Research
Dr. Lurain is a hemato-oncologist within the HIV/AIDS Malignancy Branch. She developed the first prospective clinical trial in primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) combining standard chemotherapy with the immunomodulatory drug, lenalidomide. She has helped elucidate the unique natural history of PEL compared to other HIV-associated lymphomas and identified human interleukins 6 and 10 and the EBV status of the tumor as prognostic markers in this rare disease. Her translational work focuses on understanding the changes in cellular and humoral immune function at the onset of KSHV-associated conditions and how immune function is affected by treatment.
Publications
Viral, immunologic, and clinical features of primary effusion lymphoma
The Changing Face of HIV-Associated Malignancies: Advances, Opportunities, and Future Directions
Assessment of the Safety of Pembrolizumab in Patients With HIV and Advanced Cancer-A Phase 1 Study
Discovery of Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus-encoded circular RNAs and a human antiviral circular RNA
A Pilot Study of Liposomal Doxorubicin Combined with Bevacizumab followed by Bevacizumab Monotherapy in Patients with Advanced Kaposi Sarcoma
Biography

Kathryn A. Lurain, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Lurain earned a Bachelors of Arts in Biology from Oberlin College in 2006 and a Masters in Global Public Health from the George Washington University School of Public Health in 2008. She received her M.D. from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 2012 and completed her residency in internal medicine at the University of Chicago Medical Center in 2015. In 2018, she completed a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the National Cancer Institute and then joined the HIV/AIDS Malignancy Branch as an Assistant Research Physician. During her fellowship she served as the Chief Fellow during her third year.