Steven Grant, M.D.
Massey Cancer Center research program membership
Developmental Therapeutics (co-leader)
Massey Cancer Center leadership roles
Associate director for translational research, VCU Massey Cancer Center
Program co-leader, Developmental Therapeutics
Department affiliations
Professor and Eminent Scholar, Division of Hematology-Oncology and Palliative Care, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine
Endowed and distinguished chair or professorship
Shirley Carter and Sture Gordon Olsson Chair in Cancer Research
Education
MD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (1973)
Research description
My primary focus is the development of novel strategies for the treatment of hematological malignancies, including acute myelogenous leukemia, multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This approach rests on the premise that malignant cells circumvent the lethal effects of targeted agents by activating compensatory cytoprotective pathways, and that disabling the latter pathways will lead to induction of programmed cell death or apoptosis. We have developed rational combination strategies involving diverse targeted agents, including kinase, cyclin-dependent kinase, and proteasome inhibitors, as well as BH3-mimetics. Our pre-clinical studies have led to multiple early phase I and II trials in patients with hematologic malignancies. Each of the latter trials has been accompanied by correlative pharmacodynamic studies designed to determine whether mechanisms determined to be responsible for drug synergism in pre-clinical studies can be recapitulated in patients receiving these agents in the trial. It is hoped that the bi-directional acquisition of data will inform and optimize the design of future trials based on this rational treatment strategy.
Disease focus of research
Hematologic Malignancies
Research keywords
Apoptosis,Cancer cell biology,Cancer therapy resistance,Cell signaling,DNA damage,Epigenetics,Signal transduction,Targeted therapies,Translational science
Published research (during tenure as a Massey Cancer Center member)
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