The Tumor Neuroimmunology Lab focuses on understanding how the immune system interacts with cancers in the brain. The lab uses a combination of highly multiplexed single-cell sequencing, spatial profiling, and functional assays to dissect the cellular composition and interactions in the tumor microenvironment. Current areas of focus include studying differences in the immune composition of primary and metastatic brain tumors, understanding how co-inhibitory receptors modulate regulatory T cell function in the brain microenvironment, and examining the mechanisms underlying inflammatory conditions following brain radiotherapy. The lab’s overall goal is to identify, characterize, and target regulators of the immune system in the central nervous system to improve therapies for patients with primary and metastatic brain tumors.
The study by Yale Cancer Center (YCC) researchers at Yale School of Medicine (YSM) discovered that not all CD8+ T cells are allies in a body’s fight against cancer cells. In a new study, patients living with severe melanoma who had increased levels of suppressor, regulatory CD8+ T cells had worse survival outcomes.