The loss of an exceptional young man to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at age 30 served as the inspiration for the creation of an outstanding fundraising endeavor. Under the direction of Stephen J. Forman, M.D., chair, Division of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation at City of Hope, friends and family members established the Tim Nesvig Lymphoma Fellowship and Research Fund to further understand the underlying causes of lymphoma and develop better treatment options for patients.
Hua Yu, Ph.D., is Professor of Cancer Immunotherapeutics and Tumor Immunology. Dr. Yu is a pioneer in STAT3, a protein that plays a critical role in converting healthy cells into cancerous ones. She was also the first to show STAT3’s role in both boosting cancer and shielding cancer cells from the immune system. Her work has uncovered several ways that tumor cells and immune system cells interact. Recently, she and her colleagues developed a new way to block STAT 3 in cancer cells while simultaneously boosting the immune system. The method marks a critical step in efforts to tackle the development and spread of cancer. Dr. Yu received both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Molecular Biology from Columbia University in New York City. She has published numerous articles in national science journals and lectured extensively on her groundbreaking work.