Wang Lab

Innate immune cells play a vital role in defending the body against intruders and directing the adaptive immune system to unleash a specific and durable response. However, cancer cells often hijack innate immune cells to propagate tumor outgrowth, evading anti-tumor immune surveillance and rendering many current therapies ineffective. The Wang Lab, associated with the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology (MIC), systematically examines how the complex interplay between cancer cells and the innate immune system drives cancer progression by leveraging in vivo genetically-engineered mouse models, ex vivo co-culture systems, and high-throughput screenings. To bring our most promising fundamental science discoveries from the lab to the clinic, we work closely with chemists and clinical colleagues to develop safe and effective multipronged cancer therapeutic approaches to overcome drug resistance, and to harness the innate immune system as a form of cancer surveillance to prevent lethal metastasis.