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Detection and Targeting of Enzymatic Base Editing Deregulation in Leukemia Stem Cells

Dr. Jamieson is examining the role of two enzymes (APOBEC3 and ADAR1) known to mutate DNA and RNA, and their role in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and disease relapse, particularly in elderly patients.
Leukemia survivor and Honored Hero, Jelien, smiling with a Subaru blanket

Beyond Blankets: Subaru Loves to Care brings comfort and warmth

Blood cancer treatment can be a scary and confusing time. And blood cancer patients want to feel like they’re not alone. 

That’s why The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) and Subaru are partnering to bring warmth and comfort to blood cancer patients through warm blankets, patient care kits, and handwritten notes of encouragement.

A scientist stands above a petri dish with a dropper and places a liquid solution on the dish.

The Immune System and Blood Cancer: 4 Things You Need to Know

Immunotherapy uses the power of the immune system to treat blood cancer. Today it is a standard treatment that has a profound effect in some blood cancer patients, but it still falls short in others. 

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) has been a champion of this type of cancer treatment for decades, supporting some of the earliest and most game-changing immune-based treatments for blood cancer. The advances have been astonishing, but there is so much further to go. 

Venetoclax

Venetoclax is FDA approved 

  • For the treatment of adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL). 
  • In combination with azacitidine, or decitabine, or low-dose cytarabine for the treatment of newly-diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in adults who are age 75 years or older, or who have comorbidities that preclude use of intensive induction chemotherapy.


 

Cladribine

Cladribine is FDA approved to treat people who have active hairy cell leukemia. It is also used to treat some other types of leukemia and lymphoma.

Interrogation of glutathione biology in relapsed acute myeloid leukemia stem cells

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a devastating blood cancer. Most AML patients will initially respond to standard therapy; however, for many patients the disease recurs resulting in patient death. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop new therapeutic strategies for relapsed AML patients. The objective of our proposal is to understand and target properties specific to relapsed AML cells with the overall goal of improving relapsed AML patient outcomes.

Improving the outcomes of young Black adults diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia

Young Black patients diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have significantly shorter survival compared to White patients. To comprehensively assess genetic, genomic and biologic contributors to the race-associated survival disparity, we propose a complementary approach that addresses major knowledge gaps in our current understanding of AML biology in Black patients, including the overdue characterization of the Black AML genome and subsequent delineation of biologic response to treatment.

BRAF inhibition as an alternative to chemotherapy in the treatment strategy of hairy cell leukemia

Hairy cell leukemia (HCL) is very sensitive to chemotherapy, whose toxicity to the bone marrow and the immune system is however concerning. We have established vemurafenib plus rituximab as a very effective chemotherapy-free regimen in relapsed/refractory HCL (NEJM, in press). Here, we will test it in a clinical trial against a chemotherapy-based standard of care represented by cladribine plus rituximab, aiming at lower toxicity and similar efficacy.

Development of peptide-drug conjugates for the treatment of Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukaemia (CMML)

We are aiming to bring a new treatment option to patients with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) by utilising CCL2-drug conjugates that specifically target and eliminate cancerous cells. Our leading conjugate shows potent and selective efficacy in killing CMML cells. The proposed work will help us understand how this drug works, which patients are most likely to benefit and how it can be combined with current treatments to achieve the greatest patient benefit.

Epigenetic heterogeneity in age-related clonal hematopoiesis and acute myeloid leukemia

Our focus is to unravel how clonal hematopoiesis (CH) progresses to leukemia. We will investigate how epigenetic heterogeneity affects Tet2-mutant hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) during aging. We plan to simultaneously trace HSC clonal identity and clonal history by genetic barcode and single-cell multi-omics and determine their epigenetic configurations adaptive in the aged, inflammatory bone marrow. The long-term goal is to create innovative therapeutics to mitigate CH and prolong health span.

Mechlorethamine

Mechlorethamine is FDA approved to treat people who have Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic myeloid leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, polycythemia vera and mycosis fungoides.

Ofatumumab

Ofatumumab is FDA approved 

  • For the treatment of patients who have chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) refractory to fludarabine and alemtuzumab.
  • For extended treatment of patients who are in complete or partial response after at least two lines of therapy for recurrent or progressive CLL. 
  • In combination with chlorambucil, for the treatment of previously untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), for whom fludarabine-based therapy is considered inappropriate.

Advancing the therapeutic landscape for Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML)

CMML is a universally lethal blood cancer characterized by increased monocytes (a type of white blood cell) in the peripheral blood and abnormal appearing cells within the bone marrow. Most CMML patients are clinically asymptomatic and remain so for weeks to months following diagnosis, with disease progression remaining inevitable. Despite therapeutic advances in similar blood cancers, no specific molecularly targeted therapies currently exist to treat CMML.