Cliona Rooney, PhD
- Cancer and Blood Disorders
Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Hematology-Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine
Professor, Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine
Professor, Department of Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine
Thomas J. Rosenbalm, M.D., Presidential Endowed Chair, Baylor College of Medicine
Departments:
Office location:
1102 Bates Avenue
Houston, TX 77030
Get to know Cliona Rooney, PhD
Dr. Cliona Rooney’s research interests are immunotherapies for virus and non-virus-associated malignancies and diseases. In protocols developed with Dr. Helen Heslop, Dr. Malcolm Brenner, Dr. Stephen Gottschalk and Dr. Catherine Bollard, about 150 patients have received EBV or antigen-specific cytotoxic T-cells. These have prevented and cured EBV-associated lymphoma in BMT recipients produced mixed tumor responses, including complete remissions in patients with relapsed EBV-positive Hodgkin’s disease and nasopharyngeal carcinoma and have produced clinical remission in chronic-active EBV infections. In the research laboratory, she is developing methods for the activation and expansion of antigen-specific CTLs for the treatment of non-viral cancers, investigating ways to render CTL resistant to immune evasion strategies used by tumor cells to grow in an immunocompetent host and developing means to induce antigen-specific tolerance.
Dr. Cliona Rooney is a member of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy (CAGT).
Education
| School | Education | Degree | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Cambridge, England | University | Doctor of Philosophy | |
| University of Bristol, England | Post-doctoral Fellowship | ||
| University of Birmingham, England | Post-doctoral Fellowship | ||
| Yale University | Post-doctoral Fellowship |
Organizations
| Organization Name | Role |
|---|---|
| International Association for EBV and Associated Malignant Diseases | Member |
| American Society of Gene Therapy (ASGT) | Member |
| American Society of Virology (ASV) | Member |
| National Academy of Inventors | Fellow |
| New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) | Member |
Honors and awards
- 2022
-
Translational Biology and Molecular Medicine (TBMM) Mentorship Award, Baylor College of Medicine
* Texas Children’s Hospital physicians’ licenses and credentials are reviewed prior to practicing at any of our facilities. Sections titled From the Doctor, Professional Organizations and Publications were provided by the physician’s office and were not verified by Texas Children’s Hospital.
Highlights
Dr. Cliona Rooney’s research interests are immunotherapies for virus and non-virus-associated malignancies and diseases. In protocols developed with Dr. Helen Heslop, Dr. Malcolm Brenner, Dr. Stephen Gottschalk and Dr. Catherine Bollard, about 150 patients have received EBV or antigen-specific cytotoxic T-cells. These have prevented and cured Epstein-Barr virus-associated lymphoma in bone marrow transplant recipients produced mixed tumor responses, including complete remissions in patients with relapsed EBV-positive Hodgkin’s disease and nasopharyngeal carcinoma and have produced clinical remission in chronic-active EBV infections. In the research laboratory, she is developing methods for the activation and expansion of antigen-specific CTLs for the treatment of non-viral cancers, investigating ways to render CTL resistant to immune evasion strategies used by tumor cells to grow in an immunocompetent host and developing means to induce antigen-specific tolerance.
Dr. Cliona Rooney is a member of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy (CAGT) and Bone Marrow Transplant / Stem Cell Transplant Program at Texas Children's Cancer Center.
Research interests
Immunotherapies for virus and non-virus-associated malignancies, EBV, antigen-specific cytotoxic T-cells, Treatment of non-viral cancers, Induction of antigen-specific tolerance