Precision Immuno-Oncology Lab

The challenge

Every cancer is unique. Even tumors of the same type differ profoundly from patient to patient in their genetic makeup, their immune landscape, and their ability to evade the body’s natural defenses. While immunotherapy has transformed the treatment of some cancers over the past decade, the vast majority of solid tumor patients still do not respond, and we do not yet fully understand why.

Two interconnected barriers lie at the heart of this problem. First, current immunotherapy strategies are largely built around population-level approaches, rather than the unique mutational profile and immune landscape of each individual patient’s tumor. Second, many tumors actively suppress the immune system, deploying molecular programs that prevent T cells from recognizing and attacking cancer cells, even when those T cells are present.

Our laboratory works to tackle both of these challenges: developing personalized cell therapies tailored to the unique mutational profile of each patient’s tumor and decoding the mechanisms by which individual tumors escape immune control. Because the ultimate goal is to combine both into a single, effective, patient-tailored treatment strategy, as unique as the patient’s cancer.

Main research areas

Personalized Adoptive Cell Transfer for Solid Tumors

We are developing a novel, unbiased platform for the generation of patient-specific tumor-reactive T cells, applicable to any solid tumor type. By training the patient’s immune cells to specifically recognize the patient’s unique mutational profile, we can generate and expand autologous T cells that recognize their own cancer. The goal is to make personalized adoptive cell transfer a clinically viable option for solid tumor patients, including those who have exhausted standard treatments. This work is supported by an ongoing clinical trial, for which Dr. Cattaneo serves as Principal Investigator.

Mechanisms of Immune Surveillance Evasion

A substantial fraction of solid tumors, including mismatch repair-proficient colorectal cancers, are intrinsically resistant to immunotherapy, despite harboring mutations that should, in principle, make them visible to the immune system. We investigate the active mechanisms by which these tumors suppress immune surveillance, with a focus on secreted factors and tumor-intrinsic programs that impair T cell function. Understanding these mechanisms at the individual patient level is essential to designing rational combination strategies capable of restoring immune control and expanding the reach of immunotherapy to patients who currently have no options.

Functional Patient-Specific Models for Precision Immuno-Oncology

Advancing personalized immunotherapy requires experimental systems that faithfully recapitulate the complexity of individual patient tumors and their immune microenvironment. We develop and apply state-of-the-art functional platforms, including tumor organoid–immune cell co-culture systems and genetic screening approaches, that serve as the technological backbone of our research program. These tools allow us to dissect tumor-immune interactions at the patient level, test therapeutic combinations in a patient-specific manner, and translate biological insights into clinically actionable strategies. By making these platforms available to the broader immuno-oncology community, we also aim to accelerate progress across the field.