Deciphering and Re-engineering the Immune Response to Cancer

Seminar details

I received my Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley (with Dr. David Weisblat). I completed postdoctoral training in cancer immunotherapy (with Dr. Philip Greenberg) and held faculty positions at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington in Seattle. In July 2003, I became the founding Director of BC Cancer’s Deeley Research Centre in Victoria, BC. I am also a Professor of Molecular Life Sciences at the University of Victoria and a Professor of Medical Genetics at the University of British Columbia. I was recently elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

My lab studies the immune response to cancer, with an emphasis on ovarian and lymphoid cancers. We use genomic methods to decipher the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which T cells and B cells interact to promote tumor immunity. We were the first group to show that tumor-infiltrating B cells and plasma cells (TIL-Bs) are associated with increased patient survival in high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC). We were also the first to show that anti-tumor T cell responses are associated with neoantigen elimination and allele-specific HLA loss, demonstrating that the immune system sculpts the clonal architecture of ovarian cancer. We have implemented state-of-the-art multi-color immunofluorescence, image analysis, single-cell sequencing, and spatial transcriptomic methods to analyze the complex architecture of the tumor microenvironment. I lead the "Immunology Hypothesis" of the Multi-disciplinary Ovarian Cancer Outcomes Group (MOCOG), a DOD-funded international consortium that is elucidating the biological mechanisms underlying exceptional long-term survival in HGSC. I am also PI on a Program Project Grant from the Terry Fox Research Institute which is focused on the development of novel immunotherapies that leverage the combined properties of B cells, NK cells and T cells to recognize and destroy tumor cells in HGSC patients.

As Scientific Director of BC Cancer’s Immunotherapy Program, I am leading the development of a phase I clinical trials program focused on adoptive T cell therapy for gynecological and lymphoid cancers. My team operates a clinical-grade manufacturing facility for T cell production and an adjacent immune monitoring facility. As members of the Canadian-Led Immunotherapy Collaborative (CLIC), we have ongoing Phase I/II clinical trials of CD19- and CD22-directed CAR-T cell therapies for lymphoid cancers, and a clinical trial of a novel nanobody-based CAR-T cell product to treat HGSC and other solid tumors is on track to open in early 2027. I am co-founder of Innovakine Therapeutics Inc., which is developing engineered cytokine receptors to increase the potency and safety of cell-based therapies for cancer.

Hosted by: Dr. Michele Ardolino
 

Contact