Immunology and Immunotherapy Research Program Archives - UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center

August 10, 2026

Becker’s Oncology: UNC Lineberger cancer center receives $20M gift

Drs. Barbara Savoldo, Gianpietro Dotti, Robert L. Ferris, Natalie Grover and Jonathan S. Serody at the UNC Health Foundation’s Game Changers event on November 4, 2025

This gift will fuel the next generation of cancer treatments, supporting all aspects of the UNC Lineberger Cellular Immunotherapy Program with an emphasis on clinical trials, expansion of the cellular therapeutics facility, and faculty recruitment and retention.

Catherine Cheng and Roy Dreyfuss having a conversation while sitting in a hospital room.

Roy Dreyfuss received CAR T-cell therapy for Hodgkin lymphoma as part of a clinical trial in 2016. This was more than a year before the FDA approved this treatment for other blood cancers; Dreyfuss became the first patient to receive CAR T-cell therapy at UNC Health.

Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD, will begin his term as the organization's vice president on January 1, 2027. SITC is the world’s leading professional society dedicated to advancing the science and application of cancer immunotherapy.

A patient having a spot checked on their back by a dermatologist.

A new form of immunotherapy called tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy is offering hope to some patients with metastatic melanoma who have few remaining treatment options.

UNC Lineberger's Justin Milner, PhD, has emerged in recent years as a young scientist to watch in the field of cancer immunology.

Human cells with acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) in the pericardial fluid, shown with an esterase stain at 400x magnification.

Gianpietro Dotti, MD, Paul Armistead, MD, PhD, and colleagues have created a new cellular immunotherapy that targets acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells without impacting normal blood production, which is one of the major challenges associated with AML treatment.

H. Kay Chung, PhD, received a Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Synthetic Biology Award to rewire T cell signaling in cancer, enabling T cells to reinterpret tumor-derived cues and sustain anti-tumor activity.

Tag: Immunology and Immunotherapy Research Program

Becker’s Oncology: UNC Lineberger cancer center receives $20M gift

WCHL: UNC’s Comprehensive Cancer Center Receives $20 Million Donation to Expand Research

Transformational $20 million commitment will support UNC Lineberger’s Cellular Immunotherapy Program

Celebrating 10 years of CAR T-cell therapy at UNC Health

Ferris elected as Vice President of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC)

What is TIL therapy?

Engineering better cancer fighters: In conversation with Justin Milner

UNC researchers create more effective, less toxic immunotherapy to combat blood cancer

Rewiring T cell signals in cancer

WISH-TV: New therapies and early detection drive decline in US cancer deaths