Project 5 - Novel Pharmacologic Agents in CLL
William Plunkett, Ph.D.
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Varsha Gandhi, Ph.D.
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Peng Huang, M.D., Ph.D.
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
The goals of the Pharmacology component of the CLL program project are to develop in the laboratory, using model systems and primary CLL cells in-vitro, an understanding of the mechanisms of action of anticancer agents acting alone and in mechanism-based combinations. This knowledge base will provide rationale for the design of clinical trials that will test hypotheses regarding the actions and interactions of these agents in CLL cells in clinical context. Ultimately, we seek to develop and validate short-term pharmacodynamic end-points as surrogate for clinical response that will serve as guideposts for the further development of these agents in clinical trials. Thus the central hypothesis we will test is that knowledge derived from an understanding of the metabolism, mechanism of action, and the interactions of new anticancer therapeutics can be used to design and evaluate new therapeutic regimens for the treatment of patients with CLL.