Anandani Nellan, M.D., M.P.H.

Research Projects:

• Evaluate novel targets in pediatric brain tumors utilizing antibody and chimeric antigen receptor T cell-based therapies
• Establish immunocompetent models to evaluate TME modification plus CAR T cells in brain tumors
• Characterize the CNS tumor microenvironment utilizing multimodal techniques to elucidate mechanisms of immunosuppression and treatment resistance
• Develop novel CAR T cell designs and combinatorial strategies to treat brain tumors incorporating our understanding of response and resistance to immunotherapy

My interest in research and child health began during my combined MD/MPH program at the University of Arizona. I developed a foundation in public health research methods and designed a research project based in rural India to determine predictors of adherence to the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS. I was awarded my first grant from the National Institutes of Health (Biomedical Research Abroad: Vistas Open Program) to fund this research endeavor. The results of this study demonstrated that increased social support and self-efficacy were significantly associated with improved adherence to prevention methods.

Following medical school, I completed a residency in pediatrics at the University of Virginia. There I developed a strong base in pediatric medicine and a sound understanding of critical needs for improvement in child health research. My fellowship at the combined Johns Hopkins/National Institutes of Health Pediatric Hematology/Oncology program was formative in launching my career as both a clinician and translational researcher in pediatric oncology and directly contributed to the selection of my research focus. I then obtained specific fellowship training in Pediatric Neuro-oncology at the Children’s Hospital Colorado. I received the institutional K12 Child Health Research Career Development Award in 2018 to fund the study of CAR T cells in ependymoma under the mentorship of Dr. Nicholas Foreman and Dr. Terry Fry.