Researcher Spotlight: Robert Stuver, MD
memorial sloan kettering cancer center

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALK+ ALCL) is an aggressive T-cell lymphoma that primarily occurs in young adults. Many patients can be cured with chemotherapy, but if the disease is resistant or relapses, the prognosis is poor. “We have identified two unique vulnerabilities in ALK+ ALCL that can be targeted with oral treatments,” explains Dr. Stuver. With the support of the Foundation’s Clinical Career Development Award, he plans to test the efficacy of these therapies to support long-lasting remissions or cures in relapsed or refractory disease. “If effective, these results lay the framework for testing these strategies in all patients to increase the curability of this disease,” he says.
Dr. Stuver completed his medical training at SUNY Upstate Medical University in New York. He is currently an assistant attending in the lymphoma service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he hopes to establish himself as a physician-scientist in lymphoma research focusing on T-cell lymphomas. “I want to develop clinical trials for patients with these rare, often understudied diseases and continue to partner with scientific collaborators to inform new treatments,” he says. “I hope that over the next decade I can continue to help more patients and move the lymphoma research field forward through dedicated, thoughtful action and research.”
“I am thrilled to be supported by the Lymphoma Research Foundation and the mission that this foundation stands for,” Dr. Stuver adds. “The ability to connect with this collaborative and unified group of experts and advocates is critical to the success of this project. In addition, having an early career development grant will help shape my early career development as a young physician and researcher and enable my ongoing development toward independence.”