Grant: Operating Grant

Leukemia and lymphoma (T cell malignancies) are among the fastest rising cancers in North America. For example, acute T lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) accounts for approximately 15% of all childhood leukemia and for 25 % of all adult leukemia. The cellular and molecular mechanisms that promote the development and progression of these cancers are not well understood. Furthermore, their treatment with chemotherapy is limited because of the development of drug resistance. Therefore, it is critical to investigate the mechanisms /strategies used by malignant T lymphocytes to progress and to resist the action of chemotherapeutic drugs. In this context, we have identified that certain cell surface molecules expressed by these cancer cells can promote their growth and protect them from the action of chemotherapy. We thus want to investigate how these cell surface receptors work to promote the growth of malignant T lymphocytes and their resistance to chemotherapy by using clinical samples from humans with T-ALLs and by using animal models. Findings from these studies are likely to further our understanding on how cancer cells progress and become more malignant and also may lead to the discovery of therapeutical targets, which can overcome the resistance of T-ALLs to chemotherapy.