MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jianping Huang, MD, PhD Associate Professor Director of Clinical Laboratory Operations UF Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Identification and validation of molecules that are involved in tumor progression and reduced survival in glioma patients is the starting point for developing active, safe and effective therapy. Unfortunately, very few target molecules have been identified for the deadly disease of glioma up until recently. Our studies have identified that the molecule CD70 is ectopically expressed on gliomas and involved in promoting glioma progression. Our research shows that CD70 leads to a “double jeopardy” scenario in Glioblastoma (GBM) patients by promoting tumor aggressiveness and inhibiting our immune response to cancer. These results provide a strong scientific rationale to target CD70 using state-of-the-art therapeutic approaches, such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy. (more…)