Dr. Fenghuang (Frank) Zhan, Professor of Hematology, Oncology, and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, has just been awarded a three-year, $600,000 grant from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). Dr. Zhan’s proposal, Clinical Investigation of CD38+/ Light chain+/CD24+ as Putative Multiple Myeloma Stem Cell Markers, is funded by the LLS Translational Research Program, which funds research with “high promise for translating basic biomedical knowledge to clinical application.”
Dr. Zhan describes the study:
Drug resistance arising from tumor initiation or cancer stem cells is a universal problem with current cancer therapeutic options, including myeloma. Our recent studies indicate that CD24-positive myeloma cells show increased clonogenic and tumorigenic capacity and result in drug resistance. In this project, we will attempt to identify reliable myeloma stem cell markers in clinical samples, and explore how CD24 regulates myeloma stem cell signaling using primary myeloma samples coupled with in vivo and in vitro models.
Congratulations, Dr. Zhan!