Given the variability in response to these novel immunotherapeutic agents and the desire to extend their long-term benefit to more patients, Dr. Dronca has become increasingly aware of the urgent need for the development of biomarkers that can help predict treatment outcomes and ensure that these treatments, which may have significant toxicities, are offered to patients more likely to benefit. Therefore, she has been collaborating on the development of an individualized strategy based on the sensitivity of peripheral blood tumor-reactive PD-1+CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 blockade.

cal noninvasive biomarkers that would help inform clinical decision-making by selecting patients with melanoma (and possibly other malignancies) who are most likely to benefit from PD-1 and PD-L1 blockade, or early identification of patients who are acquiring resistance during the course of administration.

In addition, one of Dr. Dronca’s main goals is to develop innovative approaches to cancer therapy utilizing chemotherapy and immunotherapy agents administered in an individualized fashion, synchronized to patient-specific endogenous anti-tumor immune dynamics, and increase the efficacy of these therapies without added toxicities or costs.