News Releases

Immune cells called macrophages are supposed to serve and protect, but cancer has found ways to put them to sleep. Now researchers at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania say they’ve identified how to fuel macrophages with the energy needed to attack and eat cancer cells.

The Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania announced today that Richard S. Schiffrin, Esq., has been appointed chair of the Center Director’s Leadership Council (ACCDLC), replacing outgoing chair Richard W. Vague.

Drugs that target BRAF and MEK in cancer have shown promise in treating a subset of melanoma that carries a mutation in the BRAF gene, but drug resistance usually emerges, reversing the benefit of these drugs and limiting the survival of patients.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first ever inhibitor drug specifically approved for treating patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a mutation in the Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) gene.

From better-understanding how to improve response rates in multiple myeloma patients to identifying why some patients with other types of cancer are resistant in the first place, research from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania continues to pace the field in expanding knowledge of cellular therapies for cancer care.

The Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) at the University of Pennsylvania announced today that it is joining the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) as its 28th member institution. The ACC joins top academic cancer centers from across the United States in creating the most frequently updated cancer care guidelines worldwide.

Anti-malaria drugs known as chloroquines have been repurposed to treat cancer for decades, but until now no one knew exactly what the chloroquines were targeting when they attack a tumor. Now, researchers from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania say they have identified that target – an enzyme called PPT1 – opening up a new pathway for potential cancer treatments.

A new program project grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will fund research by the Translational Center of Excellence for Lung Cancer Immunology at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania to improve the effectiveness of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy at fighting solid tumors.