Dr Tak W. Mak

26th Pezcoller Foundation - AACRInternational Award for Extraordinary Achievement in Cancer Research

TAK W. MAK

"His landmark discoveries about the structure of the human T-cell receptor and the role of CTLA-4 as a negative regulator of T-cell activation paved the way for a remarkable series of substantial translational advances in cancer immunology such as the development of CAR T cell technology and the first immune checkpoint inhibitor. Mak’s work on oncogenic IDH enzymes led to the development of IDH1/2 inhibitors and their subsequent approval for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. He recently bolstered the concept that immune responses are connected directly to the nervous system through effector T cell secretion of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine."