Novel Combinations of Radiation and Immunotherapy

Division Of Basic Sciences - Nci

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

As a radiation oncologist with graduate and postdoctoral training in both cancer biology and general immunology, the ultimate goal of my research is to discover effective ways to combine immunotherapies (IT) with radiation therapy (RT) to promote systemic tumor control while achieving local tumor control. Toward this goal, I opened a clinical trial, NCT01449279, with Susan Knox at Stanford, prior to joining NCI. To support the development of RT + IT trials at NCI, and to build upon existing programmatic strengths of the NCI intramural program, I am collaborating with George Pavlakis (NCI/VB), Thomas Waldmann and Kevin Conlon (NCI/LMB) to test rIL-15 + RT and hetIL-15 + RT in preclinical models, and I am the primary ROB Associate Investigator working with Tim Greten and Austin Duffy (NCI/TGIB) on NCI's colorectal liver metastases (15-C-0021), and pancreas (15-C-0027) RT + IT studies. Ultimately, we plan to study EV subsets in responders and non-responders from immunotherapy trials (such as these RT + IT trials, NCI VB vaccine trials, and other tumor immunotherapy trials at NCI), to translate the EV subset signatures into biological information that could be used for personalized and adaptive treatments for our patients.