Professor Vassiliou from the University of Cambridge on “The preclinical history of Leukaemia”

Professor Vassiliou Group from the University of Cambridge and PI at Wellcome – MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute seeks to understand the cell-autonomous and cell-non-autonomous processes involved in the transformation of normal to leukaemic haemopoietic stem cells and to identify genetic vulnerabilities of myeloid malignancies that can be exploited as targets of novel anti-leukaemic therapies.　 To achieve these aims the group uses three main approaches:　 Application of genetic screens to identify and investigate genetic vulnerabilities of acute myeloid leukaemia and related cancers in order to develop new therapeutic approaches Generation and study of bespoke mouse models of somatic mutation drivers of myeloid malignancies, in order to define their molecular, genomic and phenotypic effects on haemopoietic stem and progenitor cells Detection and tracking of the evolution of clonal haematopoiesis in healthy individuals, in order to understand the factors involved in leukaemic progression and develop new approaches for early detection.