The goal of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center (SKCCC) Hematologic Malignancies and Bone Marrow Transplantation (HMBMT) Program is to improve the understanding and treatment of proliferative disorders that affect the lymphohematopoietic system. The Program is focused on three scientific aims that cross disease boundaries and bridge laboratory and clinical efforts: (1) targeting genetic and epigenetic alterations in hematologic malignancies, (2) studying stem cells in normal and neoplastic lymphohemato- poiesis, and (3) modulating immunoreactivity in hematologic malignancies and BMT. These thematic investigations extend from basic observations in the laboratory to clinical trials and from clinical observations back to laboratory investigation. Led by Richard F. Ambinder, M.D., Ph.D., Richard J. Jones, M.D., and Mark J. Levis, M.D., Ph.D., the Program consists of 32 Program members, 26 of whom have peer-reviewed funding, and an additional five junior faculty members have K awards. The Program has members with appointments in six departments. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) and other peer-reviewed funding of Program members totals $14.1 million total costs. The total number of publications by Program members is 575, of which 120 (21%) are Intra-Programmatic and 95 (17%) are Inter-Programmatic. Of these publications, 201 (35%) have external collaborations. Since the last review, the Program has continued to develop senior leaders through the retention and promotion of internal faculty members, such as Dr. Levis (leukemia), William Matsui, M.D. (multiple myeloma and cancer stem cells), and Patrick Brown, M.D. (pediatric leukemia), as well as the external recruitment of senior investigators, such as Kenneth Cooke, M.D., to lead the pediatric oncology effort in BMT. After developing the interdisciplinary/thematic focus of the faculty members in the Program, some of the major roles of Program leadership are prioritizing resources and ensuring that interactions are synergistic. Success in these endeavors has been recognized by continued funding for the Program Project Grant in BMT and the BMT Clinical Trials Network (CTN) Core Center Grant. In addition, the Program has played a vigorous role in the development and execution of relevant clinical trials, including national cooperative group endeavors of ECOG, COG, the BMT CTN and the AIDS Malignancy Consortium, with many examples of therapeutic strategies taken from the laboratory, through early clinical testing and into national multi-institutional trials.
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