Hodgkin Lymphoma is the most common cancer type in adolescents and young adults. But until recently, very little was known about the biology of the disease. Enter, Dr. Lisa Roth, Director of Pediatric Oncology at NewYork Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine, and her team of researchers. Their tireless work to pin down the difficult biology of Hodgkin Lymphoma has led them to became the first scientists to map the entire Hodgkin Lymphoma genome, uncovering new pathways to treat this historically understudied cancer-type.
In 2012, Dr. Lisa Roth had just landed her dream job as a research scientist and attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine. But her world came to a screeching halt when she discovered a swollen lymph node on her neck, and was soon diagnosed with the exact type of cancer that she had dedicated her career to studying and treating: Hodgkin Lymphoma. After that experience, Dr. Roth was more determined than ever to uncover the biology of this notoriously difficult to study cancer. Dr. Roth, now Director of Pediatric Oncology and Associate Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Medicine and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine, tells the story of how she and her team became the first researchers to sequence the entire Hodgkin Lymphoma genome, opening doors for precision and preventative treatment options.
