Winship physician-scientist Jean Koff, MD, MS (right) with research specialist Jaime Young in the lab.
Reducing health disparities in lymphoma
Lymphoma researchers from Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine and the Georgia Institute of Technology have been awarded a five-year, $5 million grant from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) Program. This funding supports a collaborative initiative to better understand and reduce health disparities in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Leading the initiative is principal investigator Jean Koff, MD, MS, researcher in the Discovery and Developmental Therapeutics Research Program at Winship and associate professor of hematology and medical oncology at Emory University School of Medicine.
DLBCL is the most common form of blood cancer, but survival rates are lower for certain groups, including patients who are African American and patients with Epstein-Barr virus, which is common in Latin America. Limited representation of these populations in research has hindered understanding of the molecular drivers behind these disparities. The SCOR program unites experts in cancer biology, immunology and bioengineering to examine unique molecular features of DLBCL in underrepresented groups and expedite the development of targeted therapies.
"Support from LLS is crucial for our team's mission: using a better understanding of cancer biology to address health disparities in patients with lymphoma," says Koff, who also serves as the director for the Lymphoma Translational Research Team at Winship. "I’m humbled to lead this team science effort made up of outstanding investigators from Emory, MD Anderson, Cornell and Georgia Tech. Our ultimate goal is to fast-track development of treatments that will help the most vulnerable patients."
A collaborative approach
LLS grant collaborators Deniz Peker, MD, and Jean Koff, MD, MS, from Winship with Ankur Singh, PhD, from Georgia Tech.
To achieve these aims, the SCOR program’s four-site coalition will leverage large DLBCL databases that include patients from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Next-generation sequencing and imaging techniques will be used to evaluate which molecular factors are most important to target with new treatment strategies for African American and EBV+ patients. The team will build innovative models of DLBCL tumors in the lab to discover how tumor features and genetic changes affect whether the lymphoma responds to treatment. These models will also be used to test new therapies designed specifically to benefit African American patients and patients with EBV-associated DLBCL.
“This collaborative grant exemplifies Winship’s commitment to advancing equity in cancer research and treatment,” says Suresh S. Ramalingam, MD, executive director of Winship Cancer Institute. “By uniting top experts and innovative research methods, we aim to uncover specific factors causing less favorable outcomes in underrepresented groups and develop targeted therapies to improve survival and quality of life for all patients.”
"This research will provide a unique window into the intricate structure of lymphomas and how these complexities influence treatment. By studying these in patient tissues, mouse models and organoids, we can begin to combat health disparities in lymphoma, identifying why certain populations may respond differently to therapies," says Christopher Flowers, MD, MSc, division head of cancer medicine at MD Anderson and co-leader of the SCOR program’s Biostatistics and Clinical Data Core. SCOR projects are led by Koff’s frequent collaborator Ankur Singh, PhD, from Georgia Tech and a pioneer in engineered lymphoma model systems; Cornell lymphoma biology experts Leandro Cerchietti, MD, Ari Melnick, MD, Elisa ten Hacken, PhD, and Ethel Cesarman, MD, PhD; and immunogenomics researchers Luis Malpica, MD, and Sachet Shukla, PhD, from MD Anderson. The research team also includes Deniz Peker, MD, professor of pathology & laboratory medicine at Emory, as well as MD Anderson researchers Ryan Sun, PhD, and Francisco Vega, MD, PhD, and Ahmet Coskun, PhD, from Georgia Tech.
“The SCOR program exemplifies LLS’s commitment to addressing health disparities,” says E. Anders (Andy) Kolb, MD, president and CEO of LLS. “At LLS, we are investing in research that connects the dots, from understanding blood cancer’s origins and genetic drivers, to supporting late-stage clinical testing so that the best ideas are advanced more quickly to bring innovative new treatments to patients.”
LLS, the largest private funder of blood cancer research, takes a 360-degree approach to improving the lives of patients and families affected by blood cancer. In addition to supporting groundbreaking biomedical research like the SCOR program, LLS provides financial assistance, advocates for accessible care, and offers free education and support to patients and their families.