Precision Medicine Initiative

Enhancing Genomic Profiling of Blood Diseases

Molecular profiling of DNA and RNA has provided valuable new insights into the genetic basis of non-malignant and malignant hematologic disorders as well as an increased understanding of basic mechanisms that regulate hematopoiesis. The increasingly widespread use of genome sequencing and genomic profiling has significantly improved the diagnoses and treatment of hematologic diseases by identifying unique variants that can be targeted with gene-based targeted therapeutic approaches.

ASH has an enduring interest in enhancing genomic profiling of all hematologic diseases. This is evident in the Society’s programs and activities supporting this research priority and in the creation of a dedicated Subcommittee on Precision Medicine aimed at improving the use of molecular data in clinical care, research, and education.

The Society’s efforts can be categorized in the following key themes:

Improving the Use of Immunotherapies for Hematologic Diseases

The field of immunology has generated novel immune-based strategies and improved the utility of existing treatment options for various hematologic diseases. As such, ASH has had an enduring interest in improving immunotherapies for all hematologic diseases. This is evident in the Society’s programs and activities supporting this research priority and in the creation of a dedicated Task Force on Immunotherapies to address specific scientific and clinical issues related to this area of precision medicine, specifically as it applies to hematology.

The Society's efforts can be categorized in the following key themes:

Acknowledgments

Special thanks for the development of this initiative are due to the following working groups:

Somatic Working Group Members

• Elizabeth Azzato, MD, PhD, St. Jude Children’s Hospital
• Rafael Bejar, MD, PhD, University of California – San Diego
• Jorge Di Paola, MD, Washington University
• Ben Ebert, MD, PhD, Harvard Medical School
• Mark Ewalt, MD, University of Colorado, Denver
• Torsten Haferlach, MD, Munich Leukemia Laboratory
• Annette Kim, MD, PhD, Harvard Medical School
• Michelle LeBeau, PhD, The University of Chicago
• Elaine Mardis, PhD, Nationwide Children’s Hospital
• Charles Mullighan, MBBS, MD, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• Niroshan Nadarajah, Munich Leukemia Laboratory
• Keyur Patel, MD, PhD, FCAP, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• David Steensma, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• Alex H. Wagner, PhD, Nationwide Children’s Hospital
• Matthew Walter, MD, Washington University in St. Louis
• Ahmet Zehir, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Jinghui Zhang, PhD, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Germline Working Group Members

• Emery Bresnik, PhD, University of Wisconsin
• Ben Ebert, MD, PhD, Harvard Medical School
• Lucy Godley, MD, PhD, The University of Chicago
• Torsten Haferlach, MD, Munich Leukemia Laboratory
• Marshall Horwitz, MD, University of Washington
• Charles Mullighan, MBBS, MD, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• Kim Nichols, MD, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• Willem Ouwehand, MD, PhD, University of Cambridge
• Sharon Plon, MD, PhD, Baylor College of Medicine
• Akiko Shimamura, MD, PhD, Boston Children's Hospital

ASH Task Force on Immunotherapies

Co-Chairs:

• Sophie Paczesny, MD, Indiana University School of Medicine
• Steven Pavletic, MD, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health

Members:

• Catherine Bollard, MD, Children’s National Health System
• Rodrigo Calado, MD, PhD, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
• Cynthia Dunbar, MD, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
• Sergio Giralt, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Jennifer Holter-Chakrabarty, MD, University of Oklahoma
• James Kochenderfer, MD, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health
• Jeffrey S. Miller, MD, University of Minnesota
• Marcelo Pasquini, MD, Medical College of Wisconsin
• Miguel Perales, MD, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
• Katayoun Rezvani, MD, MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Bipin Savani, MD, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

Questions?

For additional information about ASH’s immunotherapy activities, please contact ashprecisionmedicine@hematology.org.