Tumor Immunology Research Program | NYU Langone Health

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Cancer Scientific Research Programs Tumor Immunology Research Program

Tumor Immunology Research Program

Our Tumor Immunology Research Program scientists are committed to harnessing the power of the immune system to fight cancer. We research the basic cellular and molecular mechanisms that affect how tumor cells interact with immune system cells, the tumor microenvironment, and the microbiome. Our studies ultimately help develop new and more effective cancer therapies.

Members include basic, translational, and clinical researchers, who collaborate at all levels. Our basic researchers investigate the mechanisms that regulate the immune system at the cellular and molecular levels. Our translational researchers then convert these results into innovative therapies, evaluating them in vitro and in animal models. Clinical researchers design and conduct clinical trials of cancer vaccines and immunotherapies.

Investigators in our program discover basic mechanisms that regulate anti-tumor immunity, delineate innate and adaptive immune responses to cancer, and define mechanisms to tumor-induced immune suppression. Through our research, we are determining the role of microbiota in modulating inflammation and its effects on anti-tumor immunity and determining the microbiota’s influence on the response to immunotherapy.

Our researchers are developing strategies to enhance the efficacy of immunotherapy by evaluating novel immunotherapy approaches in preclinical models and translating these findings into clinical trials.

The Tumor Immunology Research Program hosts monthly meetings, allowing investigators to exchange information and forge new collaborations.

Tumor Immunology Research Areas

In our Tumor Immunology Research Program, we concentrate on three primary areas of investigation: basic immunology, cancer immunotherapy, and the mechanisms of lymphocyte transformation.

Research is organized around three highly interactive themes:

  • basic mechanisms of anti-tumor immunity and its evasion
  • the effect of the microbiome on anti-tumor immunity and therapeutic response
  • strategies to enhance the efficacy of immunotherapy

Since 2012, our investigators have published several seminal papers that deepened our understanding of lymphocyte trafficking in tumors, revealed new suppressive cellular subsets in cancer, and helped explain the contribution of the gut microbiome to the anti-tumor immune response. We have also conducted practice-changing clinical trials in lymphoma and lung, bladder, and breast cancers.

Aided by NYU’s Therapeutics Alliances and Perlmutter Cancer Center’s new Biologics Initiative, our investigators founded several cancer immunotherapy-focused startup companies to leverage investor funds and resources to develop novel treatments. We have launched numerous clinical trials based on basic science from our laboratories. Our members have also received prestigious national and international awards and served in important leadership positions within Perlmutter Cancer Center and nationwide.

Meet our program members and read their high-impact publications.