Tumor Immunology Program (TIP)

Program Co-Leaders

• Robert Schreiber, PhD
• William Gillanders, MD
• David DeNardo, PhD

Overview of the Program

For more than 30 years, the immunology community at WashU Medicine (WUSM) has had a strong reputation for the significant breadth and depth of its contributions to the field of immunology and its highly interactive/collaborative nature. A strategic decision was made 20 years ago to promote basic science research in tumor immunology and establish an infrastructure to facilitate clinical translation of cancer immunotherapies at Siteman Cancer Center (SCC) and WUSM through the creation of a Tumor Immunology Program (TIP) as an integral component of the newly forming NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. This was a prescient strategic decision, and the number of SCC laboratories currently performing research related to tumor immunology has increased significantly. Of note, there has been a concomitant increase in the number of laboratories participating in translational tumor immunology research and the number of investigator-initiated cancer immunotherapy clinical trials in the current project period. This increase in translational research has been achieved through the creation of an environment that facilitates and encourages interactions and collaborations between basic scientists and physician-scientists particularly between SCC research programs, and where state-of-the-art resources and infrastructure are available to catalyze the translation of these basic science research findings into novel therapeutic opportunities.

Aims of the TIP

To accomplish its mission, the program leaders developed three scientific aims that are aligned with the central themes that define our program.

1. Define the dynamic interplay between the immune system and developing or established tumors using innovative murine and human experimental models.
2. Define the roles of immune and stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment in regulating antitumor immunity and response to immunotherapy.
3. Translate fundamental immunologic research into clinically relevant tests, interventions, and treatments.

Recorded program seminars and events are available at this link on WUSTL Box.