Steven Z. Pavletic | |
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| Born | January 25, 1956 |
| Alma mater | University of Zagreb School of Medicine |
| Occupation(s) | Hematologist, Oncologist |
| Awards | NCI Director's Award (2006) |
Steven Z. Pavletic (born 25 January 1956) is a Croatian-American physician and researcher in hematology and oncology known for his role in developing consensus guidelines for clinical trials in chronic Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). [1]
Pavletic (born Živko Pavletić) was born in Zagreb, Croatia, where he earned his M.D. from the University of Zagreb School of Medicine in 1979. He then completed a clinical fellowship in bone marrow transplantation in 1992 at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, Washington. [1] In 1995 he completed an internal medicine residency at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where he also had hematology and oncology fellowships in 1997. [1] From 1999 until 2002 he was the Director of the Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation program at the University of Nebraska. [1]
Currently, he is the Head of the Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and Autoimmunity Unit and Senior Clinician at the Experimental Transplantation and Immunology Branch of the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Center for Cancer Research at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). [1] He is presently also an Adjunct Professor of Medicine and Oncology at Lombardi Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Pavletic's main area of research is in the field of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for hematologic malignancies, chronic Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and transplantation for autoimmune disease, with a particular interest in addressing late effects in cancer therapy survivors. [2] He is best known for his research on chronic GVHD, the most common late effect in cancer survivors who underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantations as a form of treatment. [3]
Pavletic's research also includes pioneering work on the use of peripheral blood cells in allogeneic stem cell transplantation as a form of cancer treatment, as opposed to the use of stem cells from the bone marrow. [3]
Pavletic leads a number of clinical trials on chronic GVHD at the National Cancer Institute at NIH. [1] [4] He is the chief editor of the first textbook on GVHD entitled “Chronic Graft Versus Host Disease: Interdisciplinary Management”, published in 2009. According to Scopus, Pavletic has published more than 200 articles in peer-reviewed journals. Six articles on a 2005 international consensus project for clinical trials in chronic GVHD were referenced more than 1600 times in peer-reviewed literature. [5]
In October 2006 Pavletic received the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Director's Individual Merit Award for his achievements in developing national and international consensus guidelines for clinical trials in chronic GVHD, [1] which enabled research to be conducted on one of the most serious late effect cancer treatment complications in already cured patients. Six Croatian print media sources and the Voice of America reported on the award. [3] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]
Pavletic was recognized in May 2007 by the Croatian Society of Oncology for his efforts at initiating an NIH-European-Croatian expert consortium with the goal of developing strategies for the national cancer control program in Croatia. [2] This cooperation paved the way towards the signing of an agreement in 2010 between the United States and Croatia to foster educational cooperation and training in clinical oncology. [12]
The United States Embassy in Zagreb, Croatia, granted Pavletic a United States Government stipend to spend six weeks at the University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Croatia, in 2013, to assist in the establishment of a multidisciplinary center for the treatment of chronic GVHD resulting from allogeneic stem cell transplantations. [13] In 2013 the Zagreb chronic GVHD team was awarded an international peer-reviewed grant through the Unity Through Knowledge Fund (UKF). [14]
Pavletic is president of Hrvatska ura (HURA), a Washington, D.C.-based initiative established in 2010 with the goal of building cultural, economic and scientific ties between the United States and Croatia by working with the Croatian American community. [15] He also serves as vice president of the Association of Croatian American Professionals and is president of its Medicine and Health Sciences Section. [16]
Hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood in order to replicate inside of a patient and to produce additional normal blood cells. It may be autologous, allogeneic or syngeneic.
Graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is a syndrome, characterized by inflammation in different organs. GvHD is commonly associated with bone marrow transplants and stem cell transplants.
Allotransplant is the transplantation of cells, tissues, or organs to a recipient from a genetically non-identical donor of the same species. The transplant is called an allograft, allogeneic transplant, or homograft. Most human tissue and organ transplants are allografts.
Cyclophosphamide (CP), also known as cytophosphane among other names, is a medication used as chemotherapy and to suppress the immune system. As chemotherapy it is used to treat lymphoma, multiple myeloma, leukemia, ovarian cancer, breast cancer, small cell lung cancer, neuroblastoma, and sarcoma. As an immune suppressor it is used in nephrotic syndrome, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and following organ transplant, among other conditions. It is taken by mouth or injection into a vein.
Cell therapy is a therapy in which viable cells are injected, grafted or implanted into a patient in order to effectuate a medicinal effect, for example, by transplanting T-cells capable of fighting cancer cells via cell-mediated immunity in the course of immunotherapy, or grafting stem cells to regenerate diseased tissues.
Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) is a rare form of chronic leukemia that affects children, commonly those aged four and younger. The name JMML now encompasses all diagnoses formerly referred to as juvenile chronic myeloid leukemia (JCML), chronic myelomonocytic leukemia of infancy, and infantile monosomy 7 syndrome. The average age of patients at diagnosis is two (2) years old. The World Health Organization has included JMML as a subcategory of myelodysplastic and myeloproliferative disorders.
Donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) or buffy coat infusion is a form of adoptive immunotherapy used after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Boris Labar is a Croatian physician and scientist in the field of hematology and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Graft-versus-tumor effect (GvT) appears after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The graft contains donor T cells that can be beneficial for the recipient by eliminating residual malignant cells. GvT might develop after recognizing tumor-specific or recipient-specific alloantigens. It could lead to remission or immune control of hematologic malignancies. This effect applies in myeloma and lymphoid leukemias, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and possibly breast cancer. It is closely linked with graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), as the underlying principle of alloimmunity is the same. CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Treg) can be used to suppress GvHD without loss of beneficial GvT effect. The biology of GvT response is still not fully understood but it is probable that the reaction with polymorphic minor histocompatibility antigens expressed either specifically on hematopoietic cells or more widely on a number of tissue cells or tumor-associated antigens is involved. This response is mediated largely by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) but it can be employed by natural killers as separate effectors, particularly in T-cell-depleted HLA-haploidentical HSCT.
Marcel R.M. van den Brink is a Dutch oncologist and researcher at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center known for his research in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for cancer patients.
Mesoblast Limited is an Australian regenerative medicine company. It seeks to provide treatments for inflammatory ailments, cardiovascular disease, and back pain. The company is led by Silviu Itescu, who founded the company in 2004.
Microtransplantation (MST) is an advanced technology to treat malignant hematological diseases and tumors by infusing patients with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) mobilized human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-mismatched allogeneic peripheral blood stem cells following a reduced-intensity chemotherapy or targeted therapy. The term "microtransplantation" comes from its mechanism of reaching donor cell microchimerism.
Guo Mei is a hematologist and associate director of 307th Hospital of Chinese People’s Liberation Army and deputy director of Radiation Research Institute.
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.
Stromagen is a product that is made of stem cells taken from a patient's bone marrow and grown in the laboratory. After a patient's bone marrow is destroyed by treatment with whole body irradiation or chemotherapy, these cells are injected back into the patient to help rebuild bone marrow. Stromagen has been studied in the prevention of graft-versus-host disease during stem cell transplant in patients receiving treatment for cancer. Stromagen is used in cellular therapy. Also called autologous expanded mesenchymal stem cells OTI-010. Peripheral stem cell transplantation may allow doctors to give higher doses of chemotherapy and kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether Stromagen improves the success of stem cell transplantation in women with breast cancer.
T-cell depletion (TCD) is the process of T cell removal or reduction, which alters the immune system and its responses. Depletion can occur naturally or be induced for treatment purposes. TCD can reduce the risk of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), which is a common issue in transplants. The idea that TCD of the allograft can eliminate GVHD was first introduced in 1958. In humans the first TCD was performed in severe combined immunodeficiency patients.
Belumosudil, sold under the brand name Rezurock among others, is a medication used for the treatment of chronic graft versus host disease (cGvHD). It is in the class of drugs known as serine/threonine kinase inhibitors. Specifically, it is an inhibitor of Rho-associated coiled-coil kinase 2. Belumosudil binds to and inhibits the serine/threonine kinase activity of ROCK2. This inhibits ROCK2-mediated signaling pathways which play major roles in pro- and anti-inflammatory immune cell responses. A genomic study in human primary cells demonstrated that the drug also has effects on oxidative phosphorylation, WNT signaling, angiogenesis, and KRAS signaling.
Shimon Slavin is an Israeli professor of medicine. Slavin pioneered the use of immunotherapy mediated by allogeneic donor lymphocytes and innovative methods for stem cell transplantation for the cure of hematological malignancies and solid tumors, and using hematopoietic stem cells for induction of transplantation tolerance to bone marrow and donor allografts.
Nirali N. Shah is an American physician-scientist and pediatric hematologist-oncologist, serving as head of the hematologic malignancies section of the pediatric oncology branch at the National Cancer Institute. She researches the translation of immunotherapeutic approaches to treat high-risk hematologic malignancies in children, adolescents and young adults.
Stephanie J. Lee is an American haematologist and physician scientist who is Professor and Associate Director at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Lee works to improve the lives of blood stem cell transplant and bone marrow patients by better understanding the chronic form of graft-versus-host disease. Lee is the former President of the American Society of Hematology.
| Authority control databases: Academics |
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