Research Labs

The Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology research labs are working to turn discoveries into cancer treatments.  We are developing the most effective targeted therapies to attack cancer at the molecular level. 

Agarwal Lab

The Agarwal lab is interested in understanding the composite interplay of genetic events and the tumor microenvironment that are requisite for clonal evolution, disease progression, and drug resistance in leukemia. Our goal is to use this knowledge to improve the understanding of disease pathobiology and inform the development of novel, molecularly targeted therapies for patients. 

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Alumkal Lab

The Alumkal Lab focuses on identifying mechanisms by which prostate cancer progresses to the lethal form of the disease that is resistant to male hormone-lowering therapies.

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Beer & Qian Lab 

The Beer & Qian lab's goal is to develop precise and personalized ways preventing and treating advanced prostate cancer. Their research focus is to understand molecular mechanisms underpinning tumor and tumor microenvironment interaction, metastatic progression, and treatment resistance. The lab's research methods are multidisciplinary including genomics, bioinformatics, molecular biology, experimental therapeutics and clinical trials.

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Bergan Lab

The Bergan Laboratory focuses on developing highly targeted, novel therapeutics for patients with prostate and other cancers.

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Danilov Lab

Dr Danilov's laboratory investigates mechanisms of drug resistance in B-cell malignancies. Lymph nodes and bone marrow are sites where neoplastic B-cells are exposed to cellular and acellular components of the microenvironment, which deliver pro-survival stimuli. Dr. Danilov's laboratory has a particular focus on the role of tumor necrosis factor family receptors and nuclear factor-kappaB signaling in this setting, and how this signaling can be targeted. 

Dao Lab

Dr. Dao and her laboratory staff have a long-term goal of improving outcomes in patients suffering from myeloid malignancies through the development and validation of novel treatment strategies. 

Davis Lab

The Davis Lab focuses on developing new therapeutic approaches for aggressive adolescent, young adult and adult sarcomas. This includes combination treatment of molecularly-selected bone and soft tissue sarcomas with a small molecule inhibitor to sensitize tumor cells to chemotherapy. They also have a project in metastatic osteosarcoma that integrates ex vivo functional drug sensitivity and next generation sequencing to predict effective targeted drug combinations. In addition, the Davis Lab has an ongoing collaboration with Dr. Monika Davare investigating targetable kinase alterations in leiomyosarcoma. 

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Druker Lab

The Druker Lab is focused on translating the knowledge of the molecular pathogenesis of cancer into specific therapies and investigating the optimal use of these molecularly targeted agents.

Heinrich-Corless Lab

The Heinrich-Corless Lab includes both preclinical identification of novel molecular targets and testing of new agents in the laboratory and the clinic. This includes both genomics research using high-throughput gentoyping to identify oncogenic mutations and testing of new compounds in cellular and biochemical assays.  The laboratory is particularly expert in the analysis of inhibitors of oncogenic receptor tyrosine kinases such as KIT, PDGFRA and FLT3.

Jason Taylor Lab

Dr. Jason Taylor's laboratory works in benign hematology and immunology with a specific interest in hemophilia. 

Matthew Taylor Lab

Dr. Matthew Taylor's lab is working to understand the molecular mechanisms that regulate patterns of metastatic spread of cancer. Additionally, we are seeking to understand the various ways that tumors are able to evade detection and attack by the immune system.

Traer Lab

The Traer lab focuses on understanding how the bone marrow microenvironment protects residual leukemia cells from targeted kinase inhibitors, which eventually leads to development of resistance, disease relapse, and poor patient outcomes. The lab is particularly interested in developing novel therapeutic combinations to overcome this type of resistance.

Tyner Lab

The Tyner Laboratory uses an integrated platform of functional screening and genomic analyses to identify and pre-clinically develop novel targeted therapies and drug combinations for hematologic malignancies, with an emphasis on elucidation of the molecular mechanism of action of effective agents and combinations.

More about Knight cancer research programs