Lloyd Bod, PhD

Massachusetts General Hospital

Academic Titles

Assistant Professor, Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Research Program Affiliation

Member, Cancer Immunology

Research Abstract

Immunotherapies have demonstrated remarkable clinical success in the treatment of various cancers mainly by boosting the function of endogenous T cells to attack neoplastic cells. Unfortunately, the frequency of patients responding to these therapies is modest and a significant fraction of patients develop severe immune-related adverse events. These observations have catalyzed a more thorough investigation of other cell types in the tumor microenvironment that could be targeted to increase treatment efficacy while mitigating toxicity. B cells are an important arm of the adaptive immune system frequently infiltrating solid tumors, however, their function on cancer progression has not been sufficiently explored. The Bod laboratory focuses on deciphering the landscape of phenotypic and functional B cell states within tumors. In particular, we are interested in exploring which B cell subset is favorable or detrimental for cancer progression, and by which mechanisms these B cells control tumor growth. Our thorough examination of the B cell response towards cancer aims to provide a new angle to harness the anti-tumor immune response more effectively.