Adult Leukemia Program

The Adult Leukemia Program at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is an internationally recognized comprehensive effort. It is dedicated to the clinical care of patients with acute and chronic leukemia, with a focus on the development of novel therapies for both forms. The program generates translational research to understand the underlying causes of leukemias and inform development of future therapeutics.

The clinical care team comprises an expert group of dedicated medical hematologist-oncologists, bone marrow transplant physicians, hematopathologists, oncology pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, social workers, and medical assistants. The whole team is dedicated to delivering quality and compassionate care. In addition, the care team includes specialists from The Mount Sinai Hospital. We work closely with experts in infectious disease, pulmonary and critical care, nephrology, cardiology, gastroenterology, interventional radiology, and palliative care.

In addition to clinical care, the Adult Leukemia Program is dedicated to understanding the biologic basis of leukemia. Our goal is to develop novel therapies that improve patient outcomes. Through extensive collaboration with laboratory researchers, we have built a research infrastructure that brings findings from the laboratory directly to the clinic. Patients have access to many state-of-the-art clinical trials (see below). Our research addresses targeted therapies, novel antibodies, bispecific T-cell engagers, and hematopoietic stem cell products.

Dr. John Mascarenhas

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04281498
For patients who have myeloproliferative neoplasms with accelerated or blast phase disease, there are no standard medical treatments. This trial will evaluate a targeted therapy called Enasidenib in combination with Ruxolitinib in patients who have an IDH2 mutation.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03065400
There are few effective treatment options for patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms in accelerated or blast phase. In this trial, these patients will receive pembrolizumab, a medication approved for the treatment a number of cancers that harnesses the patient's own immune system to attack cancerous cells. This trial includes patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms in accelerated and blast phase disease.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03258931
Some patients with acute myeloid leukemia have a mutation called FLT3 which can be treated with a targeted oral therapy called midostaurin. This clinical trial randomizes patients with FLT3 mutated acute myeloid leukemia to either midostaurin or another more potent FLT3 inhibitor called crenolanib.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03038230
Patients with acute myeloid leukemia that have relapsed or not responded to therapy have few treatment options available. MCLA-117 is a novel type of anticancer treatment called a bi-specific antibody (BiTE) that will be used in this trial to harness the patient's own immune cells to attack the leukemia.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04155580
This trial evaluates the effectiveness of Idasanutlin, which blocks a protein called MDM2, which represses an important cell fate regulator called p53, in patients with relapsed acute myeloid leukemia.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04113616
This phase 1/2 trial evaluates the addition of a drug called KRT-232 which activates p53 to induce cancer cell death in combination with low intensity leukemia directed therapy for patients with AML that have relapsed after initial therapy.

Dr. Marina Kremyanskaya
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04155580
Acute myeloid leukemia that has relapsed is often resistant to therapies. This clinical trial utilizes a novel oral agent called ASTX600, which triggers leukemia cells to undergo a self-death program called apoptosis, in addition to an oral version of decitabine called ASTX727.

Dr. Michal Bar-Natan
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04506086
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT0315069

Dr. Lewis Silverman
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03248479
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03814005

Dr. Shyamala Navada
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04266795
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03701308

The Mount Sinai Hematology/Medical Oncology Fellowship Program is dedicated to the training, mentoring and career development of superb clinicians, outstanding critical thinkers and future academic leaders in Hematology and Medical Oncology. The fellowship includes 18 months of dedicated and protected research time in addition to clinical time, which includes rotations on the inpatient Leukemia service.  The opportunity to attend any of the Leukemia outpatient centers and engage in clinical and laboratory research with a focus in myeloid and lymphoid leukemia is available to all trainees.

Read more about the fellowship program here.

Prior Leukemia Fellows

Name Current Appointment
Bridget Marcellino  Assistant Professor of Medicine (Hematology and Medical Oncology), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
 Sangeetha Venugopal  Leukemia Fellow, MD Anderson Cancer Center
 Daniel Aruch  Virginia Oncology Associates

Meet Our Director

John Mascarenhas, MD, is Director of the Adult Leukemia Program and Director of the Adult Blood Cancers and Myeloid Disorders Center of Excellence at the Mount Sinai Health System. He has extensive experience in clinical and translational research in chronic myeloid leukemias and the transition to acute leukemia. He has led numerous investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored clinical trials in myeloproliferative neoplasms and acute leukemia. He has presented nationally and internationally as an invited speaker on the topic of the biology and treatment of myeloid neoplasms and has served as an author of more than 150 publications, and over 12 book chapters. Additionally, he is a National Cancer Institute-funded Principal Investigator of the clinical trials project within the P01 grant supported Myeloproliferative Neoplasms Research Consortium.