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Master of Advanced Studies in Precision Medicine Therapeutics in Oncology MAS in PMTO
  1. Precision Medicine Therapeutics in Oncology
  2. Curriculum
  3. Precision Immunotherapy Course

Precision Immunotherapy

Course Information

PMTO 208 Precision ImmunotherapyEzra CohenScott Lippman

  • 3 units
  • Quarter Offered: Winter
  • Instructors: Scott M. Lippman, M.D., Distinguished Professor of Medicine, FAS, Adjunct professor at the MD Anderson Cancer Center; Ezra Cohen, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Tempus Labs, Inc.

Course Description & Learning Objectives

Precision oncology aims to optimally select treatment for each patient by first identifying and, subsequently, targeting molecular defects in the patient’s tumor, best matching patients for a given therapy. A greater understanding of the human genome, transcriptome, and proteome coupled with advanced next-generation sequencing, liquid biopsy and AI technology have led to an unprecedented era of personalized therapy. Currently, all approaches for detecting clinically actionable genomic targets in the clinic rely on molecular profiling, creating clinical workflow and precision medicine bottlenecks. The severity and magnitude of this problem clinically was highlighted in a recent high-profile report (Schilsky. NEJM. December 2022), revealing that only ~3% of patients in the US are actually receiving FDA-approved companion diagnostics and precision therapy, leading to suboptimal, ineffective, or inappropriate treatment, disproportionately impacting underserved, resource-constrained clinical settings. This course will cover basic tumor biology, developing personalized therapies, use of predictive biomarkers, limitations, challenges and mechanisms and manifestations of targeted and immune therapy. The former is increasingly complex and challenging given treatment recommendations of treating all patients while only a very low rate of durable clinical benefit and extreme costs, making the importance of immune-checkpoint resistance biomarkers to identify and treat likely responders based on pre-treatment genomic biomarkers. This course will address all of the above aspects and issues of precision medicine development, implementation and uptake in the US and globally and provides an understanding of the clinical application of novel immunotherapy in oncology.

Learning Outcomes & Skills Acquired from the Course

Upon the completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Have a better understanding of the impact, limitations, and new approaches to enhance precision therapy in oncology and non-oncology settings in standard therapy and clinical trials.
  • Learn the process of individualized genome- and immune-directed therapy and biomarker development through specific examples and case studies to better understand the issues facing and challenges surrounding personalized therapy of cancer and other major human diseases, notably infectious diseases.
  • Acquire the understanding of genomic testing, targeted therapy and how a specific immune response is generated and the parameters employed in developing personalized immunotherapies as well as predictive biomarkers for current immune drugs.
  • Understand the requirements, both scientific and regulatory, to develop precision therapy, including a cellular therapy or vaccine for cancer.
  • Develop an understanding of the biology of human immunity and cancer as it applies to developing precision approaches to targeted treatment
  • Review recent innovations in immunotherapy in the fields of cell therapy and personalized vaccines
  • Review targeted and/or immunotherapy drugs currently in practice or under clinical development, e.g. checkpoint inhibitors, with a focus on mechanisms of sensitivity, resistance, and predictive biomarkers.
  • Understand immune responses and immune-related toxicity