MSK’s Omar Abdel-Wahab Honored for Research Targeting Blood Cancers
Sunday, December 10, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator alumnus Omar Abdel-Wahab was honored at the 2023 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting with the William Dameshek Prize for his “trailblazing research” characterizing the genetic mutations that drive blood cancers. Dr. Abdel-Wahab was also included in the annual list of Highly Cited Researchers published by the Institute for Scientific Information at Clarivate.
Lung Cancer Cells’ ‘Memories’ Suggest New Strategy For Improving Treatment
Friday, November 17, 2023
Research from the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator alumnus Tuomas Tammela shows that some lung cancer cells retain a “memory” of the healthy cell where they came from—one that might be exploited to make an emerging type of lung cancer treatment called KRAS inhibition more effective.
Illuminating the Immune System
Tuesday, November 7, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator Chrysothemis Brown co-led a research team that uncovered a new class of immune cells that play a key role in training babies’ immune systems not to attack the helpful bacteria in the digestive system.
MSK Researchers Identify Promising Immunotherapy Target for AML
Tuesday, October 31, 2023
New research co-led by Josie Robertson Investigator alumnus Omar Abdel-Wahab identifies a promising immunotherapy target for acute myeloid leukemia.
MSK Awards & Appointments June 2023
Thursday, June 22, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator Chrysothemis Brown was named a 2023 Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences.
MSK-Led Research Finds Unexpected Link Between Chromosomal Instability and Epigenetic Alterations
June 7, 2023
Research overseen by Josie Robertson Investigator alumni Samuel Bakhoum and Yael David has uncovered a previously unknown link between two important hallmarks of cancer: chromosomal instability and epigenetic alterations.
Samuel Bakhoum Received the BioInnovation Institute & Science Prize for Innovation
Friday, April 28, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum was one of two finalists to receive the BioInnovation Institute & Science Prize for Innovation, which recognizes “bold researchers who ask fundamental questions at the intersection of life sciences and entrepreneurship.”
The Gut Microbiome and Cancer: MSK Researchers Present New Findings
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Research led by Josie Robertson Investigator Karuna Ganesh provided clues that microbiomes might explain the increase in colorectal cancer among younger patients.
Friday, April 14, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator alumna Andrea Schietinger received the 2023 AACR-Irving Weinstein Foundation Distinguished Lectureship Award for her “unparalleled scientific contributions to the field of immunology.”
Samuel Bakhoum and Karuna Ganesh Awarded Funding from Starr Cancer Consortium
Tuesday, March 28, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigators Samuel Bakhoum and Karuna Ganesh were among the researchers whose teams won grants in the Starr Cancer Consortium’s 16th annual competition.
Tuomas Tammela Received The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research ASPIRE Award
Tuesday, March 28, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator Tuomas Tammela was among three MSK researchers awarded The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research ASPIRE Award, which supports “innovative ideas worldwide that have the potential to solve high-impact problems in cancer research.”
Samuel Bakhoum Received the Emerging Leader Award from The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research
Thursday, February 9, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum was awarded the Emerging Leader Award from The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research for a project that examines “the link between chromosomal and epigenetic reprogramming in cancer.”
Andrea Schietinger Awarded the AACR-Irving Weinstein Foundation Distinguished Lectureship Award
Friday, January 6, 2023
Josie Robertson Investigator alumna Andrea Schietinger received the 2023 AACR-Irving Weinstein Foundation Distinguished Lectureship Award for outstanding personal innovation in science.
Tuesday, November 1, 2022
Josie Robertson Investigator alumnus Omar Abdel-Wahab was a key leader in research that resulted in a new standard of treatment for histiocytosis patients.
Newly Discovered Immune Cells Shed Light on Formation of Healthy Relationship with Gut Bacteria
Thursday, October 13, 2022
Josie Robertson Investigator Chrysothemis Brown led research that illuminated how Thetis cells play a key role in establishing a harmonious relationship between infants and the helpful microbes in their digestive systems.
Alexander Gitlin Honored with Prestigious NIH Director’s Early Independence Award
Tuesday, October 4, 2022
Josie Robertson Investigator Alexander Gitlin received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s Early Independence Award to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying inflammatory cell signaling in health and disease.
Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Josie Robertson Investigators Karuna Ganesh, Piro Lito, and Richard Hite received the 2022 Pershing Square Sohn Prize, which empowers investigators early in their independent careers to pursue their most exciting research projects at a critical stage.
Two Josie Robertson Investigators Received the 2022 Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award
Thursday, May 26, 2022
Molecular geneticist Elli Papaemmanouil and medical oncologist Santosha Vardhana received the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award for their “innovative ideas that have the potential to significantly advance the prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of cancer.”
New Type of Genetic Testing Aims to Benefit Children and Young Adults with Cancer
Wednesday, May 18, 2022
Elli Papaemmanouil, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2015 to 2020, is a co-leader in important new research that could help make whole genome sequencing the standard diagnostic test to profile tumors.
Hands, Feet, and Fins: The Connection That Explains Acral Melanoma
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Richard White, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2012 to 2017, is exploring the evolutionary similarities between the genes that determine how humans develop fingers and the ones that determine how fish get fins. The findings have broad implications for how scientists understand cancer development, and even how individual patients with certain forms of melanoma should be treated.
SKI Scientists Determine Structure of a DNA Damage ‘First Responder’
Monday, March 21, 2022
Josie Robertson Investigator Richard Hite used cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to illuminate a crucial process in DNA repair, correcting a model that had persisted for two decades and opening doors to new research that could lead to better, more effective treatments.
What Causes Resistance to Leukemia Drug Pirtobrutinib? MSK Researchers Investigate
Thursday, February 24, 2022
Omar Abdel-Wahab, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2012 to 2017, played a key role in the research that determined how and why patients develop resistance to an important new experimental drug called Pirtobrutinib. Dr. Abdel-Wahab is Director of MSK’s Center for Hematologic Malignancies.
February 3, 2022
Nikolaus Schultz, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2013 to 2018, worked with colleagues in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics to analyze the genomic data compiled from more than 50,000 patients. The results uncovered important new insights about metastasis, which causes 90 percent of cancer deaths today. Dr. Schultz is the Head of Knowledge Systems in the Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Center for Molecular Oncology.
How Does COVID-19 Affect People with Blood Cancer? MSK Researchers Investigate
Tuesday, December 21, 2021
As New York City became an early epicenter in the COVID-19 pandemic, Josie Robertson Investigator Santosha Vardhana played a key role in the research that established worldwide standards of care for cancer patients infected with the virus.
November 30, 2021
Researchers led by immunologist Andrea Schietinger, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2014 to 2019, have discovered a stem-like T cell in Type 1 diabetes, an important advance that holds potential for improving cancer immunotherapy.
MSK Researchers Are Learning Why Some Patients Develop Resistance to ‘Landmark’ Lung Cancer Drug
November 11, 2021
Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito, a member of MSK’s Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, is co-leader of a study that shows how resistance to sotorasib—the landmark lung cancer drug approved by the FDA last year—can be caused by several molecular changes, which has important implications for developing new drugs to counteract the resistance.
A Milestone for Precision Oncology: FDA Gives Green Light to MSK’s Genetic Database
Thursday, November 4, 2021
Nikolaus Schultz, the head of Knowledge Systems at the MSK Center for Molecular Oncology and a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2013 to 2018, was one of a small team who developed the pioneering OncoKM, the genetic variant database recently sanctioned by the FDA as a scientifically valid tool to interpret the usefulness of tumor mutations for predicting drug responses.
Researchers Uncover New Findings about KRAS, an Important Protein in Cancer
Friday, October 8, 2021
Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito has led new research that may lead to the development of cancer drugs even more effective than sotorasib, one of the most exciting advances in cancer treatment over the past few years.
New Grant Awarded to MSK for Efforts in Acute Myeloid Leukemia Research
Tuesday, September 7, 2021
Omar Abdel-Wahab, Director of the MSK Center for Hematologic Malignancies and a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2012 to 2017, is co-principal investigator for a research initiative that has received a Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant from the National Institutes of Health.
Why Are Only Some Cells ‘Competent’ to Form Cancer? MSK Scientists Say Context Is Key
Friday, September 3, 2021
Richard White, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2012 to 2017, teamed up with developmental biologist Lorenz Studer to investigate how cancer genetics and developmental biology cooperate to achieve “oncogenic competence” in cancer formation.
Research Suggests How Boosting Neoantigens Can Make Immunotherapy More Effective
June 24, 2021
Omar Abdel-Wahab, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2012 to 2017, led a study that developed new ways to prompt cancer cells to generate more of the neoantigens that could make them vulnerable to immunotherapy treatments involving checkpoint inhibitors.
How Four Decades of Research Led to a Breakthrough Treatment for Lung Cancer
Monday, May 24, 2021
Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito played an important role in early research that paved the way for a dramatic breakthrough in a targeted therapy for lung cancer.
Research Shows How Common Feature of Blood Cancers Can Be Targeted
February 5, 2021
Alex Kentsis, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2013 to 2018 and now the director of the Tow Center for Developmental Oncology, is the senior author of a study that shows how a protein called MYB can be targeted, suggesting a new approach for drugs that could treat a range of cancers, especially myeloid leukemias, in both children and adults.
January 25, 2021
Cancer biologist and pediatric oncologist Alex Kentsis, a Josie Robertson Investigator from 2013 to 2018, is Director of the Tow Center for Developmental Oncology.
Discovery About How Cancer Cells Evade Immune Defenses Inspires New Treatment Approach
December 28, 2020
New findings from the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum help explain why some tumors do not respond to immunotherapy—suggesting new ways to sensitize them to immunotherapy.
Year in Review: Five Important Clinical Advances in Cancer in 2020
December 21, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito contributed to new research showing that a drug called sotorasib (AMG 510) slowed or stopped cancer growth in many people with advanced cancer containing a version of the mutant KRAS protein called KRAS-G12C.
Year in Review: Top 10 MSK Cancer Science Breakthroughs of 2020
December 21, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigators Elli Papaemmanouil, Karuna Ganesh, and Tuomas Tammela played key roles in some of the most consequential breakthroughs of the year.
Why Do Certain Chemotherapies Increase the Likelihood of Blood Cancer?
October 26, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Elli Papaemmanouil is studying clonal hematopoiesis, an age-related blood condition that increases the risk of blood cancer.
Computational Biologist Thomas Norman Honored with NIH Director’s New Innovator Award
October 6, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Thomas Norman has received a National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award, which supports highly innovative research from early-stage investigators whose creativity and research has the potential to produce a major impact.
Promising Results from the First-Ever Trial of a Drug that Blocks Cancer Gene KRAS
September 20, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito is a senior author of the landmark research paper in the New England Journal of Medicine.
International Study Pinpoints Impact of TP53 Gene Mutations on Blood Cancer Severity
August 3, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Elli Papaemmanouil was the lead scientist on a study that has immediate clinical relevance for risk assessment and treatment of people with myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia.
A Never-Before-Seen Cell State May Explain Cancer’s Ability to Resist Drugs
July 23, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Tuomas Tammela and his colleagues have identified an unusual cell state that emerges early in tumor evolution and supports a cancer’s ability to outwit chemotherapy.
Science Spotlight Lecture: Yael David (Video)
June 29, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Yael David delivers her MSK Science Spotlight lecture on June 29, 2020.
Researchers Find Many Cancers Carry Two Mutations in the Same Gene
May 27, 2020
A study led by Josie Robertson Investigator Barry Taylor and fellow computational oncologist Ed Reznik showed that nearly a quarter of all tumors have two different mutations in the same gene that contribute to the formation of an individual cancer.
Science Spotlight Lecture: Andrea Schietinger (Video)
May 4, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Andrea Schietinger delivers the Louise and Allston Boyer Young Investigator Award for Basic Research award lecture as part of MSK Science Spotlight.
Harnessing the Power of Data for Patient Care
MSK News, Spring 2020
A study led by Josie Robertson Investigator Barry Taylor and cancer geneticist Michael Berger led to an algorithm that helps determine where in the body a tumor originated.
What Does Cancer Metastasis Have to Do with Wound Healing? More than You Might Think
January 13, 2020
Josie Robertson Investigator Karuna Ganesh was the first author on a paper presenting evidence that the ability of cancers to metastasize to other organs is dependent upon their ability to coopt natural wound-healing pathways.
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FDA Grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation to Cobimetinib
October 2, 2019
A phase II trial led by Eli Diamond, David Hyman, and Josie Robertson Investigator Omar Abdel-Wahab led to a breakthrough treatment for adults with histiocytic disorders.
How an Altered Gatekeeping Protein Can Cause Cancer
September 16, 2019
Josie Robertson Investigator Omar Abdel-Wahab and his colleagues in the Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program (HOPP) analyzed data from MSK-IMPACTTM to show how the alteration of the XPO1 protein could cause cancer.
At Work with Developmental Biologist Thomas Vierbuchen
April 2019
Josie Robertson Investigator Thomas Vierbuchen’s experience as a cancer patient reinforced his conviction that basic research is fundamental to the fight against cancer.
Scientists Discover Keys to Immune Response against Anthrax
April 18, 2019
The laboratory of Josie Robertson Investigator Daniel Bachovchin is working toward a better understanding of pyroptosis, which could pave the way for new therapies for infectious disease, cancer, and autoimmune disorders.
Cellular “Garbage Collectors” Are Key to Cancer’s Growth
March 20, 2019
Josie Robertson Investigator Yael David and her colleagues in the Sloan Kettering Institute have linked a type of protein damage called glycation to cancer and other diseases.
The Convergence: Scientists Move toward a New Understanding of Metastatic Cancer
February 27, 2019
Josie Robertson Investigator Karuna Ganesh has brought a passion for seeking answers to fundamental scientific questions to her focus on understanding metastasis.
What Organoid Models Can Teach Us About Metastasis (Video)
A look inside the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator and Medical Oncologist Karuna Ganesh.
At Work: Radiation Oncologist and Breast Cancer Specialist Samuel Bakhoum
February 2019
The lab of Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum conducts research on chromosomal instability and its role in how cancer forms, spreads, and resists drugs.
What Was MSK’s Role in TCGA, the Groundbreaking Cancer Genomic Study?
January 4, 2019
The Cancer Genome Atlas has profoundly increased our understanding of the molecular basis of cancer. Josie Robertson Investigator Nikolaus Schultz was involved with the project from the beginning.
At Work: Cancer Biologist Tuomas Tammela
December 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Tuomas Tammela discusses his path to becoming a cancer researcher and how it led to the focus of his lab: to develop ways to reduce heterogeneity in tumors.
Inside My Lab: Tuomas Tammela (Video)
A look inside the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator and Cancer Biologist Tuomas Tammela.
Samuel Bakhoum Awarded 2018 NIH Early Independence Award
October 4, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum has received the 2018 National Institutes of Health Director’s Early Independence Award, which is given to exceptional scientists who have contributed significant work in biomedical research.
At Work: Chemical Biologist Daniel Bachovchin
August 2018
Chemical biologist Daniel Bachovchin studies the cellular signals that control immune responses. He says his guiding principle is that “the truth is always the most interesting possible result.”
Inside My Lab: Daniel Bachovchin (Video)
Inside the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator and Chemical Biologist Daniel Bachovchin.
At Work: Immunologist Andrea Schietinger
September 2018
Tumor immunologist and Josie Robertson Investigator Andrea Schietinger studies why immune cells sometimes fail to fight cancer—and what can be done about it.
Putting the STING in Immunotherapy: Research Focuses on Ways to Improve Cancer Treatments
September 19, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum and his colleagues are looking for ways to make checkpoint inhibitor drugs more effective. One tactic is by making cancer cells more visible to the immune system.
September 10, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Barry Taylor and Physician-scientist David Solit, Director of the Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Center for Molecular Oncology (CMO), were key collaborators on a study of hormone-resistant breast cancer tumors.
Gene-Sequencing Test Uncovers New Clues about a Defect Seen in Many Tumors
July 18, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Barry Taylor led a collaborative team of researchers who found that a genetic state called whole-genome doubling is more common than expected and is associated with worse outcomes in people with cancer.
Splicing May Be an Effective Target in the Fight against Cancer
July 18, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Omar Abdel-Wahab studies the process called splicing in an effort to develop a new treatment for blood cancers.
Don’t Scratch That Mole? Scientists Are Learning More about Inflammation and Cancer
June 26, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Richard White, an expert in melanocytes and melanoma, studies zebrafish to determine whether the area surrounding a cancer cell can influence its fate.
What Is Epigenetics, and Why Is Everyone Talking about It?
June 19, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Omar Abdel-Wahab, a physician-scientist in the Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, studies the role of epigenetics in blood cancers.
Cancer Cells Eat Fat to Grow and Spread
June 14, 2018
Richard White, a physician-scientist in the Cancer Biology and Genetics Program at SKI, discovered that melanomas preferentially grow near adipose (fat) tissue and eagerly eat up the abundant fats, also called lipids, found there.
At Work: Chemical Biologist Yael David
April 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Yael David focuses her research on epigenetics—the study of how proteins, small molecules, and other factors lying above the genome can influence which genes in a cell are expressed.
A look inside the lab of Josie Robertson Investigator and Chemical Biologist Yael David.
Escape Artists: Cancer Cells Mimic Immune Cell Activity to Spread
January 17, 2018
Josie Robertson Investigator Samuel Bakhoum was the lead author of a study that could guide treatment strategies to lock cancer from spreading.
October 2017
Josie Robertson Investigator Andrea Schietinger was awarded for her groundbreaking work in immune responses to cancer, molecular mechanisms underlying tumor-induced T cell dysfunction, and new approaches for cancer immunotherapy.
Giving Drugs Together — Rather than in Sequence — May Be Key to Halting Tumor Resistance
July 2017
Working with xenografts in mice, Josie Robertson Investigator Piro Lito and his colleagues found that a combination of three targeted drugs was effective at preventing drug resistance in certain cancer cells.