By Sarah Sargent
Over the last century, Pritzker School of Medicine alumni have had a profound impact on the field of cancer research, making discoveries and developing new treatments that were revolutionary in their time and laid the foundations for cancer care today. Many of today’s leading researchers say their time at Pritzker prepared them to excel, linking them with mentors and role models who inspired their careers.
Paper cutouts of chromosomes transform the understanding of cancer
Janet Rowley, LAB’42, PhB’45, SB’46, MD’48 (1925–2013), the Blum-Riese Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine, Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology and Human Genetics at the University of Chicago, made a series of discoveries, starting in the 1970s, connecting cancer development with genetic abnormalities. Today, this is considered common knowledge, but at the time, Rowley was pushing her colleagues to fundamentally change the way they understood cancer.
One of Rowley’s most notable insights emerged when she learned techniques to photograph the chromosomes of leukemia patients using a fluorescence microscope. She recalled examining cutouts of photographs of chromosomes at home, while her children teased her about getting paid to play with paper dolls. She recalled how, in the spring of 1972, she “lined up the chromosomes from leukemia cells on a table and told my kids not to sneeze.” She observed, and then established, a pattern of abnormalities in the chromosomes common across different types of leukemia, which paved the way for the development of new types of drugs.
Rowley’s discoveries transformed the field of cancer research and laid the foundations for the targeted therapies and precision medicine of modern oncology. Researchers of later generations had access to more sophisticated tools and technologies than she did, but they followed the roadmap she provided.
Megan McNerney, PhD’05, MD’07, professor of pathology built on Rowley’s groundbreaking work, focusing on a specific chromosome in patients who developed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after receiving cancer treatment. Rowley’s discovery suggested that changes to this chromosome were caused by the medicine used to treat the previous cancer and played a role in the emergence of AML. Years later, McNerney and her colleagues confirmed the connection, leading to new insights about how leukemia patients respond to treatment, and to a new understanding of how a patient’s underlying genetics can impact—or be impacted by—therapy.
“After rounding with Dr. Wendy Stock, I realized the best way for me to serve cancer patients and their loved ones was to work to identify new treatments,” said McNerney. “I consider Dr. Janet Rowley to be my scientific grandmother. I learned mentorship skills from Dr. Vinay Kumar. Both of these scholars exemplified humanism, integrity, and the joy of discovery.”
From revolutionary technology to precision therapies and individualized care
Rowley examined cancer cells under a microscope, but with the emergence of the field of genomics, researchers could look inside cells and observe patterns of gene expression in cancer. Using this then-novel technique, Todd Golub, MD’89, director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, developed ways to characterize human tumors on a molecular level. His techniques revolutionized the way doctors classify, diagnose, and treat cancer. The tools his lab developed are still used by cancer researchers today, and his insights into acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)—the most common form of childhood leukemia—led to changes in treatment that are still the standard of care.
With an understanding of the inner workings of cancer cells, researchers began to tailor therapies for individual patients. Anthony Letai, PhD’93, MD’95, director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), pioneered discoveries revealing how cancer cells avoid the programmed cell death that is part of normal biological functions. His work on leukemia cells led to the development of precision cancer therapies that are now standard treatment for adults with leukemia. He also identified methods for predicting how cancer cells will respond to chemotherapy, allowing physicians to tailor treatments to individual patients. “While Pritzker granted me my PhD and MD degrees, even more important to me is that Pritzker molded me into a scientist and a physician. I got to see the right way to be a scientist and the right way to be a doctor, and I have carried those lessons throughout my career,” said Letai.
Today’s cancer researchers work to harness a patient’s own immune system through novel therapeutics such as immunotherapy.
Noura Choudhury, MD’15, assistant professor of medicine, is a translational scientist studying the mechanisms that allow cancer cells to resist therapies, and is working to bring laboratory discoveries to patients. She collaborates with laboratory-based scientists, including Charles Rudin, PhD’91, MD’93, Cancer Center Director at Memorial Sloan Kettering, to lead a clinical trial for patients with small-cell lung cancer, which is opening nationwide through the NCI.
Choudhury appreciated summer programs that helped her shape her research interests. “Through the Pritzker Summer Research Program and the Pritzker Fellowship, I had the opportunity to do in-depth cancer research early in my training that set me on an academic medicine pathway in oncology,” she said.
Entering a second century and building eminence
Today, Pritzker remains one of the nation’s leading institutions for cancer research, physician training, and the translation of laboratory discoveries into patient care. Pritzker students embed research in their training—over 99 percent engage in a mentored research project during their time at medical school.
Opportunities for mentored research shape students’ visions for their career paths. In the Scholars in Oncology-Associated Research (SOAR) program, selected students participate in an 11-week intensive experience, working alongside National Institutes of Health-funded mentors to engage in leading-edge bench, clinical, and population research. Many trainees continue their research well beyond the summer experience, publishing findings in high-impact journals and presenting at premier conferences.
“Pritzker prepared me for and inspired my career by making the direct connections between patient care, disease pathobiology, and biomedical research,” said McNerney.
Today, as breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and personalized medicine revolutionize healthcare, and UChicago Medicine prepares to open a state-of-the-art, freestanding cancer facility, Pritzker continues to empower students to lead the way in leveraging new technologies, pursuing urgent questions, and improving standards of care for patients in Chicago and around the world.