News & Awards

At the Leading Edge of Cancer Research Symposium, November 17-18, Simona Colla, Ph.D., recipient of the 2022 Wilson S. Stone Memorial Award, was a keynote speaker.

Cancerwise: Myelodysplastic syndrome researcher: Leaps of faith led to my career at MD Anderson

Nature Medicine, Research Briefing: Overcoming myelodysplastic syndrome progression after frontline therapy

“The investigators did an incredibly exhaustive analysis of samples from patients with MDS and were able to pinpoint the biological mechanisms that are responsible for treatment failure. Taking their discoveries one step further, they identified a therapy combination that is clinically effective and has a great potential to improve the outcomes of patients in whom current standard therapies have failed.” ~Editorial team, Nature Medicine

“This manuscript is for all committed scientists who work tirelessly despite life’s challenges with the hope of helping to cure cancer. It is also dedicated to the memory of our fathers.”  ~S. Colla

ASH Clinical News: Cell architecture drives MDS and progression, could guide second-line treatment

Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D., was a speaker at the Emerging Scientist session at the 15th Annual FlowTex Conference.

Simona Colla, Ph.D., was awarded the DoCM Faculty Achievement Award, Team Science.

Irene Ganan-Gomez was awarded ASH Abstract Achievement Award, “Mutant Natural Killer Cells Drive Immune Escape in Early-Stage Myelodysplastic Syndromes” (abstract withdrawn by authors).

Vera Adema was awarded the Leukemia SPORE Career Enhancement Award.

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) published an article, Meet three women in science championing myelome cures and care, featuring Simona Colla, Ph.D., LLS Career Development Program Scholar in "Finding the 'Achilles’ Heel' of Multiple Myeloma."

At the 62nd ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition, Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D. received the Abstract Achievement Award.

At the 18th International Myeloma Workshop (IMW) in Vienna, Austria, Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D., earned the IMS Young Investigator Award for Exemplary Abstract.

Irene Ganan-Gomez was awarded the ASH Abstract Achievement Award for “The Transcriptional and Epigenetic Reprogramming of Aged Hematopoietic Stem Cells Drives Myeloid Rewiring in Clonal Hematopoiesis-Associated Cytopenias.”

Vera Adema was awarded the Tito Bastianello Young Investigator Award (Basic Research) by the MDS Foundation.

Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D., was awarded the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Research Restart Award.

At the 61st ASH (American Society of Hematology) Annual Meeting & Exposition, Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D., was awarded an Abstract Achievement Award and Oral Presentation.

At the 17th International Myeloma Workshop, Nattakan Thongon, Ph.D., was awarded the Young Investigator Award: IMS Award for Exemplary Abstract.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Leukemia SPORE Career Enhancement Award was awarded to Irene Ganan-Gomez.

ASH Abstract Achievement Award for “Cell-Type Specific Mechanisms of Hematopoietic Stem Cell (HSC) Expansion Underpin Progressive Disease in Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) and Provide a Rationale for Targeted Therapies” was awarded to Irene Ganan-Gomez.

The Kimberly Patterson Fellowship in Leukemia Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Endowed Fellowship Award Program, was awarded to Irene Ganan-Gomez.