The Department of Cancer Immunotherapeutics and Tumor Immunology (CITI) seeks to advance immunotherapeutic methods as a cure for cancer, eventually reducing or eliminating the need for chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. The department will be housed in the new Arnold and Mabel Beckman Center, currently under construction. This new building will feature state-of-the-art laboratory research and educational facilities dedicated to immune system-based cancer therapies.

CITI is led by City of Hope's preeminent researchers and physicians, including Chair Andrew Raubitschek, M.D., Associate Chair Michael Jensen, M.D., and Director of Clinical Research Stephen Forman, M.D.

Immunotherapy, a powerful weapon against cancer because of its potential to exploit the body's natural defenses against infection, has been called the "fourth modality" of cancer treatment by the American Cancer Society. The department’s goal is to make it a highly effective primary treatment option.

Currently, T-cell therapy and radioimmunotherapy offer renewed hope to people who have exhausted other treatment options. They are also effective for eliminating microscopic residual disease which can lead to cancer recurrence, even after chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery have been successful.

Andrew Raubitschek, M.D., Chair
Dr. Raubitschek’s research focuses on using genetically engineered monoclonal antibodies. He investigates antibody metabolism and interactions between chemotherapy and radioimmunotherapy to determine the effect of radioimmunotherapy on certain tumors.

David Colcher, Ph.D.
Dr. Colcher brings 20 years experience using radiolabeled mAbs, both in vitro and in vivo - in model systems and in numerous clinical studies. He developed a number of antibodies to tumor-associated antigens that are well recognized in the field.

David L. DiGiusto, Ph.D.
A microbiologist and immunologist, Dr. DiGiusto has more than 15 years experience developing cellular therapeutics for cancer and infectious disease.  He has been instrumental in the development of City of Hope’s cellular therapeutics program.

Stephen J. Forman, M.D.
An international expert in leukemia, lymphoma and bone marrow transplantation, Dr. Forman helped build City of Hope’s Hematologic Malignancies Program into one of the largest and most successful programs in the world. 
 
Michael Jensen, M.D.
The work of Dr. Jensen focuses on immune-based therapies for treating malignancies, specifically the potential of augmenting the antitumor response of T cells, the body's immune defense against infection and cancerous cells.

Hua Yu, Ph.D.
Dr. Yu’s laboratory was the first to validate Stat3, a critical regulator of tumor cell survival and proliferation, as a molecular target for cancer therapy in animal models. Yu's team also discovered the critical role of Stat3 in tumor angiogenesis and tumor immune evasion.