? HEMATOLOGIC MALIGNANCIES AND CELLULAR THERAPIES PROGRAM The Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapies Program (HMCT) is a multidisciplinary clinical, basic and translational research effort whose theme is to facilitate research with the ultimate objective to improve outcomes for patients with hematological malignancies. The broad, long-term goals of HMCT are to build on and extend current knowledge in the field of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, immunotherapy and hematological malignancies, and to develop novel strategies for improving therapeutic results in patients with hematological malignancies through a collaborative and integrated approach involving the basic, translational and clinical investigators of HMCT. The HMCT has two focus areas related to our scientific aims and theme: 1) Understanding the interplay between hematopoietic/immune cells and their microenvironment with respect to immune activation and suppression; and 2) translating laboratory-based observations to clinical trials. Among the strengths of the program are the significant numbers of physician scientists working on fundamental problems in hematological malignancies and who are able to take the basic observations at the bench to the bedside through extensive collaborations with the clinical researchers. Specially, the scientific goals of the HMCT Program are: 1) To understand the role of the external environment and microenvironment in immune responses; 2) To elucidate the role of immune and stromal cells in anti-tumor responses and graft-vs.-host disease (GVHD); 3) To develop and execute investigator-initiated translational trials for hematologic malignancies - all with the goal to stimulate and facilitate intra- and inter-programmatic collaborations; 4) To further advance genomic signatures in hematological malignancies and evaluate the role of different signaling mechanisms and; 5) To train the next generation of MD, PhD, and M.D./Ph.D. students, postdoctoral, fellows, residents in the field of adult and pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, immunotherapy and hematological malignancies. The Program includes 36 primary and 9 secondary members from 6 departments and two schools within Duke University. Total direct funding for program members is $17.2M, of which $4.4M is peer-reviewed, including $1.6M from the NCI. From 2014- 2018, program members published 457 papers in peer-reviewed journals, 21% were intra-programmatic and 28% were inter-programmatic collaborations. During the current grant period, the program enrolled 1,519 subjects to all trials, 923 to interventional trials, and 587 to treatment trials.
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