My career goal is to conduct translational clinical and laboratory research to develop new technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. My academic background has provided me with broad exposure to several relevant disciplines including biomedical engineering, cell biology and clinical trial development. As a graduate student, my research focused on nanotechnology and the development of drug delivery systems. Through my work with Dr. Samuel Wickline, an internationally recognized expert in nanotechnology, I developed a prodrug formulation of the cytolytic peptide melittin which could be locally activated in the tumor microenvironment. I then studied the delivery of this prodrug specifically to melanoma tumors using perfluorocarbon nanoparticles. This work led to the publication of four peer-reviewed articles, including three where I was first author, and numerous abstracts presented at national conferences. This experience also provided me with an excellent background in preclinical technology development, including chemical synthesis and in vitro and in vivo testing of drug delivery systems. As I progressed through my medical training and developed an interest in hematologic malignancies, I became fascinated by another emerging technology – engineered cellular therapies. The chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell platform allows for the development of cellular products with a variety of targeting capabilities and has revolutionized the treatment of hematologic malignancies. Yet, there are several aspects of this platform which limit its widespread utilization and serve as important areas for further investigation. During my fellowship, I worked with Dr. Sattva Neelapu, one of the pioneers of clinical translation of the CAR T-cell platform, and Dr. Pavan Bachireddy, an immunogenomics expert, to study the mechanisms by which allogeneic CAR T-cell therapies are rejected by the recipient immune system. We identified recipient-derived alloreactive CD8+ T-cells as key mediators of this process and potential targets for novel strategies to enhance allogeneic CAR T-cell expansion and persistence. As a new Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University, I am building a translational research program to use patient samples from clinical trials and standard-of-care treatments to investigate the mechanisms underlying CAR T-cell expansion and antitumor activity and develop strategies to improve CAR T-cell efficacy.