LLS Funds Immunoengineers and Cancer Specialists to Tackle Health Disparities

A multi-institutional research initiative aims to address lymphoma survival disparities in African American and EBV-infected patients.

A new interdisciplinary initiative with researchers at Georgia Tech, Emory University, MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Weill Cornell Medical aims to address the knowledge gap in lymphomas — particularly diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common form of blood cancer. Survival rates for DLBCL are lower among African American patients and those with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is prevalent in Latin America. The team uses immunoengineering tools to facilitate this discovery.

Tackling Health Disparities in Lymphoma Treatment

To address these health disparities, the team combines expertise in cancer biology and immunoengineering. At Georgia Tech, Ankur Singh works with oncologists and cancer biologists from partner institutions to create innovative cancer technologies, such as lab-grown, lymph node-mimicking models of DLBCL tumors. Singh is Carl Ring Family Professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) and directs the Center for Immunoengineering. These models will mimic the tumor environments in lymphoma from African American patients and model specific mutations prevalent in these patients. Researchers will observe how various genetic changes work in concert with the immune system to impact a tumor's response to treatments. 

“We want to understand the full makeup of these tumors; not just the cancer cells but the surrounding supportive cells and proteins,” said Singh, who serves as co-investigator for LLS SCOR.  “This study will help us pinpoint which parts of the tumor are critical for its survival and how we can disrupt those mechanisms, including the immune cells.” 

Challenges for Understanding Tumor Biology in High-Risk Groups

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is the most common form of blood cancer. While many patients respond well to standard therapies, a significant portion — including a disproportionate number of African Americans and individuals with EBV-related conditions, experience poorer outcomes. The reasons behind these disparities are still largely unknown. Current barriers include a lack of diverse representation in research studies and a paucity of engineered technologies dedicated to understanding cancers in patients from underrepresented backgrounds. 

"Most lymphoma studies don't include nearly enough African American or Hispanic patients," said Jean Koff, lead investigator and associate professor of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Emory University’s Winship Cancer Institute. “This means we are likely missing key insights into the unique biology and treatment needs of these populations.”

A Collaboration Focused on Advancing Lymphoma Research and Care

This new initiative, funded by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) Program, will analyze a comprehensive collection of DLBCL tumor samples that includes many cases from Black and Hispanic patients. By examining genetic differences and tumor structures, the researchers hope to identify the factors most important for improving therapy for these groups. 

“This program is groundbreaking because it addresses both biological and structural barriers in treatment, leveraging the latest bioengineered technologies,” Singh noted. “We’re looking at factors that have been overlooked for too long in cancer research, especially in high-risk communities.” 

To explore the composition and diversity of cells within tumors of African American patients and better understand how they grow and respond to treatments, the team leverages the expertise of Ahmet Coskun. Coskun is a Georgia Tech immunoengineer known for his innovative approaches to understanding the immune response to cancer. An assistant professor in BME, Coskun holds the Bernie Marcus Early Career Professorship. He and his team use advanced imaging techniques and engineering principles to analyze tumor microenvironments in unprecedented detail. By examining how different immune cells interact with cancer cells, they hope to uncover the complexities of tumor biology and identify factors that contribute to treatment resistance.

This five-year, multi-million-dollar LLS SCOR award is the culmination of years of collaboration among leading researchers in the field of lymphoma. Singh, with colleagues Koff, Coskun, Christopher Flowers at MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Cornell Medicine’s Ari Melnick, Ethel Cesarman, and Leandro Cerchietti, are fostering a partnership in lymphomas and EBV-related cancers, which is instrumental in advancing research on lymphoma treatment health disparities. Their longstanding partnership reflects a commitment to addressing the complex challenges different populations face when battling deadly cancers.

"With this unique partnership, leveraging new cancer technologies, biology, and clinical expertise, we hope to make breakthroughs in lymphoma research and begin to address health disparities in lymphoma at multiscale levels,” said Melnick, a co-lead for LLS SCOR and Gebroe Family Professor of Hematology and Oncology at New York’s Weill Cornell Medicine. 

The group also played a significant role in organizing, moderating, and presenting at the inaugural conference “Health Disparities in Hematologic Malignancies: From Genes to Outreach,” held in May 2023 in New York. The conference served as a vital platform for discussing the latest research, sharing best practices, and highlighting the importance of outreach initiatives aimed at improving care for underserved populations. 

"The research will provide a unique window into the intricate structure of lymphomas and how these complexities influence treatment,” said Flowers, a physician-scientist and division head of Cancer Medicine at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. “By studying lymphoma microenvironments in patient tissues and organoids, we can begin addressing health disparities in lymphoma, identifying why certain populations may respond differently to therapies. No other technology currently provides this level of insight or potential for tailored patient care."

This unique research collaboration is crucial, as understanding tumor heterogeneity can inform the development of more personalized treatment strategies, particularly for underserved communities that often face disparities in cancer care. By integrating engineering with oncology, the team hopes to create more effective therapies tailored to individual patient profiles, ultimately aiming to improve outcomes for all lymphoma patients. This multi-site collaboration aims to fast-track the development of therapies against lymphomas in African Americans and individuals with EBV-related conditions and eventually bring them to clinical trials. 

Project Title: Translating molecular profiles into treatment approaches to target disparities in lymphoma

(Funding and award period: $5 million, October 1, 2024 - September 30, 2029) 

Related reading: Georgia Tech-Emory Collaboration on Cancer Disparity in African Americans Gets NIH Boost