Grant: Doctoral Research Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

Cancer immunotherapy is a rapidly growing field of research which has led to several unprecedented advances in cancer treatment. Key to the success of immunotherapy are T cells, a type of white blood cell that can recognize and kill cancer cells. However, a major subset of solid tumors are immunologically 'cold', meaning they are resistant to T cell entry. One promising strategy shown to ignite immune activity within cold tumors has been the use of oncolytic viruses. These engineered viruses selectively infect and replicate within cancer cells, while leaving healthy cells unharmed. Yet, many cancers express inhibitory 'off switches' called immune checkpoints, which can prevent T cells from killing tumor cells. My thesis work will create a new therapeutic strategy that uses OVs in combination with blocking antibodies against immune checkpoints elevated in cold tumors. This strategy is designed to 'heat up' cold tumors, thereby enhancing the immune response against cancer. In Aim 1, I will use state of the art genomic and histological methods to profile tumor and immune cells following OV treatment. By discerning the landscape of checkpoints in OV treated tumors, I will design rational combination strategies to further enhance T cell activity. In Aim 2, I will assess the therapeutic efficacy of combining OV treatment with blockade of checkpoints in a cold murine cancer model. By targeting immune checkpoints found to be elevated in cold tumors, I expect to see enhanced immune cell infiltration and clearance of established tumors. Looking to the future, my research is part of the Canadian Oncolytic Virus Consortium, a national scientific network aimed at accelerating OV based treatments. This provides a unique opportunity for my innovative approach to quickly move from bench to bedside for the benefit of patients.