Ronald Levy | |
---|---|
Alma mater | |
Known for | Rituxan |
Children | 3 |
Awards | 2016 AACR-CRI Lloyd J. Old Award in Cancer Immunology |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Oncology |
Institutions |
Ronald Levy is an American physician and scientist at Stanford University. He specializes in lymphoma, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Burkitt's lymphoma and Hodgkin's disease. [1] His research investigates how the immune system can be harnessed to fight lymphoma. His work has led to the concept that antibodies can be used as personalized anticancer drugs and to the development of an antibody-based drug, Rituxan, that is widely used to treat lymphoma. [2]
He is currently married and has 3 daughters.[ citation needed ]
Levy received an A.B. degree in biochemistry from Harvard University in 1963, and an M.D. from the Stanford University School of Medicine in 1968. [3] He did his residency and internship at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and is board-certified in oncology by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Levy's work has been recognized with multiple honors and awards, including the King Faisal International Prize, [4] the Damashek Prize, the American Cancer Society's Medal of Honor, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's di Villiers International Achievement Award, the C. Chester Stock Award from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the Karnofsky Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and others. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and of the Institute of Medicine. [5]
In 2009 Levy was awarded the King Faisal International Prize in Medicine, sometimes called the "Arab Nobel Prize". He was awarded the prize for his work on Rituxan. In an interview with Haaretz , Levy said that he was very surprised when he was notified by the prize committee about his victory. He was awarded $200,000, a medal, and a certificate in English and Arabic. He and his family were invited to visit Saudi Arabia and have dinner with the Saudi King Abdullah. Levy's wife is Israeli and one of his daughters was born in Israel, yet his family and he were able to travel to Saudi Arabia with no problems. They were "treated to royal hospitality." Coincidentally, the King Faisal International Prize was first awarded 30 years ago, around the same time that Levy began his work in this field. [6] [7] However, despite these statements by Dr. Levy, the King Faisal Award had been awarded previously to individuals who happened to be Jews without any controversy, a notable example being Sydney Brenner who won the award in 1992.
Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes. The name typically refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, drenching sweats, unintended weight loss, itching, and constantly feeling tired. The enlarged lymph nodes are usually painless. The sweats are most common at night.
Rituximab, sold under the brand name Rituxan among others, is a monoclonal antibody medication used to treat certain autoimmune diseases and types of cancer. It is used for non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, rheumatoid arthritis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, pemphigus vulgaris, myasthenia gravis and Epstein–Barr virus-positive mucocutaneous ulcers. It is given by slow intravenous infusion. Biosimilars of Rituxan include Blitzima, Riabni, Ritemvia, Rituenza, Rixathon, Ruxience, and Truxima.
Cancer immunotherapy (immuno-oncotherapy) is the stimulation of the immune system to treat cancer, improving the immune system's natural ability to fight the disease. It is an application of the fundamental research of cancer immunology (immuno-oncology) and a growing subspecialty of oncology.
Ibritumomab tiuxetan, sold under the trade name Zevalin, is a monoclonal antibody radioimmunotherapy treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The drug uses the monoclonal mouse IgG1 antibody ibritumomab in conjunction with the chelator tiuxetan, to which a radioactive isotope is added. Tiuxetan is a modified version of DTPA whose carbon backbone contains an isothiocyanatobenzyl and a methyl group.
Dacarbazine, also known as imidazole carboxamide and sold under the brand name DTIC-Dome, is a chemotherapy medication used in the treatment of melanoma and Hodgkin's lymphoma. For Hodgkin's lymphoma it is often used together with vinblastine, bleomycin, and doxorubicin. It is given by injection into a vein.
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Josep Baselga i Torres, known in Spanish as José Baselga, was a Spanish medical oncologist and researcher focused on the development of novel molecular targeted agents, with a special emphasis in breast cancer. Through his career he was associated with the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology, and the Massachusetts General Hospital in their hematology and oncology divisions. He led the development of the breast cancer treatment Herceptin, a monoclonal antibody, that targets the HER2 protein, which is impacted in aggressive breast cancers.
Lucatumumab is a human monoclonal antibody against CD40 development of which was discontinued by Novartis in 2013 after it was investigated for the treatment of various types of cancer like multiple myeloma and follicular lymphoma.
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The King Faisal Prize, is an annual award sponsored by King Faisal Foundation presented to "dedicated men and women whose contributions make a positive difference". The foundation awards prizes in five categories: Service to Islam; Islamic studies; the Arabic language and Arabic literature; science; and medicine.
Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells are present in the patient's lymph nodes. The condition was named after the English physician Thomas Hodgkin, who first described it in 1832. Symptoms may include fever, night sweats, and weight loss. Often, nonpainful enlarged lymph nodes occur in the neck, under the arm, or in the groin. Persons affected may feel tired or be itchy.
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David G. Maloney is an oncologist and researcher at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington who specializes in developing targeted immunotherapies for the treatment of blood cancers.
Checkpoint inhibitor therapy is a form of cancer immunotherapy. The therapy targets immune checkpoints, key regulators of the immune system that when stimulated can dampen the immune response to an immunologic stimulus. Some cancers can protect themselves from attack by stimulating immune checkpoint targets. Checkpoint therapy can block inhibitory checkpoints, restoring immune system function. The first anti-cancer drug targeting an immune checkpoint was ipilimumab, a CTLA4 blocker approved in the United States in 2011.
Camrelizumab (SHR-1210) (INN) is an anti-PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor that is being investigated for hepatocellular carcinoma and Hodgkin lymphoma.
Sally Barrington is a professor of positron emission tomography (PET) Imaging and National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) research professor at King's College London (KCL), England, United Kingdom. She joined KCL in 1993.