Wir überwinden Grenzen

Prof. Dr. Robert Zeiser from the Medical Center - University of Freiburg is honored together with Prof. Dr. Nikolas von Bubnoff (University of Lübeck) in the category "Translational Research" / Their research improves therapy after stem cell transplants

For his outstanding work in cancer medicine, Prof. Dr. Robert Zeiser, Head of the Department of Tumor Immunology and Immune Regulation at the Department of Medicine I at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg, together with Prof. Dr. Nikolas von Bubnoff from the University of Lübeck, has been awarded the German Cancer Prize 2021 in the Translational Research category. This was announced on February 3, 2021 by the German Cancer Society, which awards the prize together with the German Cancer Foundation. The award recognizes Zeiser and von Bubnoff's research, which has made a significant contribution to improving the control of serious complications following stem cell transplantation. The award ceremony will take place in the summer.

"The Cancer Prize is a great recognition for our research. The therapy we have developed makes stem cell transplants safer. We therefore hope that it will soon be approved in Europe," says Zeiser.

When the savior becomes the enemy

For the majority of acute leukemia patients, an allogeneic blood stem cell transplant is the only chance of recovery. Those affected then receive blood stem cells from another person. However, a life-threatening immune reaction, known as graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), occurs in around one in two patients after the transplant. The transplanted immune T cells recognize the recipient's intestinal, skin and liver tissue as foreign and damage it. Around half of GvHD patients do not respond to standard immunosuppressive therapies, such as cortisone.

Thanks to the work of Zeiser and von Bubnoff, these patients now also have an effective treatment option. The underlying research took place at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg in the Department of Medicine I, where von Bubnoff also worked before moving to the University of Lübeck.

The researchers discovered that a specific drug from the family of so-called Janus kinase inhibitors is able to inhibit the inflammatory messenger substances that occur in GvHD. An international multicenter study initiated by the two prizewinners showed that the drug can bring the complications of GvHD under control in significantly more patients and that those affected are also well in the longer term. Based on the study, the drug has now been approved for the treatment of GvHD in the USA.

Press release on the study:

International study makes stem cell transplants safer https://www.uniklinik-freiburg.de/presse/pressemitteilungen/detailansicht/2023-internationale-studie-macht-stammzelltransplantationen-sicherer.html

Caption: Prof. Dr. Robert Zeiser
Image source: private

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Robert Zeiser
Head of the Department of Tumor Immunology
Department of Medicine I (Specialties: Hematology, Oncology, Stem Cell Transplantation)
Department of Medicine I (Specialties: Hematology, Oncology, Stem Cell Transplantation)
Phone: 0761 270-34580
robert.zeiser@uniklinik-freiburg.de