T cells are central to controlling cancer, and immunotherapies that activate them have transformed treatment over the last decade. But, these therapies don’t work for everyone, and better strategies are urgently needed. Dr. Laura Mackay is exploring a powerful but underused ally in the fight against cancer: tissue-resident memory (TRM) T cells.
Dr. Mackay’s research has shown that TRM T cells, a unique type of T cell that takes up long-term residence in tissues, play a key role in protecting against solid tumors like breast cancer. While patients with more TRM cells in their tumors tend to live longer, scientists still do not fully understand how these cells develop or how they work to stop cancer.
Dr. Mackay’s team will investigate what molecules are responsible for the development and activation of TRM cells and how their cancer-fighting abilities can be enhanced. The answers could lead to therapies that activate or expand TRM cells directly in the tumor, adding a powerful new layer to breast cancer treatment and potentially to other solid tumors as well.
Research Focus
Breast cancer, T cells, solid tumors
Projects and Grants
Uncoupling tissue-resident memory T cells and exhausted T cells in tumors
