Researcher Spotlight: Danielle Wallace, MD

UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER

Mindy Camp Fedida Memorial Scholar

Older patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) are often treated with lower doses of chemotherapy, which may contribute to an incomplete cure of the disease. Residual tumor cells in the body release pieces of DNA into the blood and detection of this circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) may serve to help identify patients who are at increased risk for disease relapse. “My proposal suggests that if they still have ctDNA in their blood, we should start additional treatment, even if a PET scan shows no obvious lymphoma,” says Dr. Wallace. In this project, patients will receive additional therapy with the bispecific antibody mosunetuzumab, which should help facilitate immune clearance of remaining tumor cells “The concept is that the mosunetuzumab might be able to address the low levels of lymphoma still present and improve the chances of curing patients,” she explains.

Dr. Wallace is hopeful that the results of her project will help to improve cure rates for older patients with DLBCL. “Nearly a third of patients with DLBCL are over the age of 75, and these patients do not have the same cure rates as younger patients,” she explains. “In addition, if they experience relapse, they are not eligible for intensive therapies. Therefore, trying to improve the initial cure rates are important for older patients.”

Dr. Wallace was drawn to a career in lymphoma research during her medical training at SUNY Upstate Medical University in New York. “I have always been interested in the care of older patients, though,” she says. “My father is a geriatrician, so early on I knew the importance of specialized care for older adults.” She is continually inspired by her patients and her goal as a researcher is to develop more effective, more personalized, and less toxic therapies for these individuals. Through the support of the Lymphoma Scientific Research Mentoring Program (LSRMP) fellowship program, Dr. Wallace is eager to optimize the details of her clinical trial and develop her skills as a lymphoma researcher and clinician.