Research

In lymphoma our focus is a B cell malignancy called follicular lymphoma and the (epi)genomic changes responsible for the onset and severity of the disease. Although these tumours are chemo-sensitive, the disease is incurable, with many patients experiencing several episodes of relapse before the disease becomes refractory to treatment. We have traced the genetic changes in these tumours over time and uncovered a highly complex pattern of tumour evolution, consistent with the existence of a common progenitor B cell (CPC) population from which each new episode of disease is thought to arise. Current studies are focusing on characterising this CPC population and the use of KDM5 inhibition as a means of subverting the effects of mutations in the histone methyltransferase, KMT2D, that arise in >70% of FL tumours.

In leukaemia we have a longstanding interest in the study of familial acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and myelodysplasia. These studies are important both to the individual families and are providing new insights into the molecular evolution of AML, the patterns by which mutations arise and an explanation for the clinical heterogeneity that exists both within and between families. We also have a parallel programme in poor risk AML where outcomes have changed little over the past 40 years, and are following a multi-omic strategy to profile these AMLs and gain a deeper understanding of the disease in this group of patients.  

• Watch Professor Fitzgibbon’s interview with the MDS UK Patient Support Group at the UK MDS Education Forum.
• Watch below: European School of Haematology Video -  Meeting Highlights - Faculty Panel Discussion: What are the big discoveries in lymphoma pathogenesis over the last 5 years? Genetics and precision medicine

Other Activities

• Chair Danish Research Fund (Medical Sciences - Cancer) (2021-)
• Associate Editor British Journal of Haematology (2021-)
• Chair of the NCRI Lymphoma Science sub-group (2020-)
• Visiting Professor at the 1st Department of Pathology, Semmelweis University Budapest Hungary (2019-)
• Member of the Bloodwise Grant Committee (2017-)
• Member of the Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro (AIRC) international fellowship committee (2016 - )
• Member of the NCRI Lymphoma CSG (2018-)
• Advisory Board Lancet Haematology
• Editor Annals of Human Genetics
• External Examiner on the BMedSCi Course, Birmingham (2016-)

Watch below: Professor Jude Fitzgibbon gives an overview of the NCRI Lymphoma Science Subgroup

Major Funding

• 2018-2023- Cancer Research UK Accelerator Award, UK & Follicular Lymphoma lead (Jesus San Miguel (Spain) and Mario Cazzola (Italy), £1.6M to UK
• 2017-2022- Cancer Research UK Programme Award, Co-PI (Improving treatment in Poor Risk Acute Myeloid Leukemia), £1.9M
• 2015-2019- Blood Cancer UK Programme Award, Co-PI (with Dokal and Vulliamy) Genetics of Familial Leukaemia, £1.4M
• 2013-2018- Cancer Research UK, Personalised Epidgenetic Therapy for Follicular Lymphoma, £542,566.63
• 2016-2018- Blood Cancer UK, Precision medicine for aggressive lymphoma, £340,538.00

Recent Publications

Drug ranking using machine learning systematically predicts the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs Gerdes H, Casado P, Dokal A et al. Nature Communications (2021) 12(7)

Germline ETV6 variants: Not ALL created equally Rio-Machin A, Fitzgibbon J Blood (2021) 137(7) 288-289

Molecular genetics in indolent lymphomas Fitzgibbon J, Weigert O (2021) (7) 5-20

Inherited Myeloid Malignancies Fitzgibbon J EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN GENETICS (2020) 28(11) 17-17
http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000598482600038&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=612ae0d773dcbdba3046f6df545e9f6a

The complex genetic landscape of familial MDS and AML reveals pathogenic germline variants Rio-Machin A, Vulliamy T, Hug N et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Integration of Deep Multi-Omics Profiling Veals New Insights into the Biology of Poor-Risk Acute Myeloid Leukemia Rio-Machin A, Casado-Izquierdo P, Miettinen J et al. Blood (2020) 136(10) 39-40

Identification of recurrent mutations in the microrna‐binding sites of b‐cell lymphoma‐ associated genes in follicular lymphoma Larrea E, Fernandez¿mercado M, Guerra¿assunção JA et al. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2020) 21(7) 1-12

The Biological Basis of Histologic Transformation Kumar EA, Okosun J, Fitzgibbon J Hematology/Oncology Clinics of North America (2020) 34(7) 771-784

A frameshift variant in the specificity protein 1 triggers superactivation of SP1-mediated transcription in familial bone marrow failure. Dokal I, Tummala H, Vulliamy T et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USA (2020) (1)

Recent Advancements in Hematology: Knowledge, Methods and Dissemination, Part 1 Fitzgibbon J, Park S, Cook G et al. Bloods—International Open Access Journal of Hematology (2020) 1(10) 5

Team

Postdoctoral Researchers in this group
Dr Ana Rio-Machin, Dr Findlay Copley, Dr Eve Coulter, Dr Hannah Armes 

PhD Students
Karina Close

Clinical Research Fellows
Emil Arjun Kumar

Biography

I joined Barts and the London Medical School as a Research Fellow in Medical Oncology in 1997, becoming Senior Lecturer in 2004, Reader in 2009 and Professor in 2013. I received my BA degree in Genetics at Trinity College Dublin in 1989 before completing my PhD studies on the Genetics of Tuberous Sclerosis at University College London in 1993.