Francis Mussai MA(Oxon), BM, BCh, DPhil, MRCPCH

Dr. Mussai is currently Clinical Senior Lecturer at University of Birmingham.He has received MA, BM Bch, DPhil degrees from St. Anne’s College, University of Oxford, Christ Church College, University of Oxford, Magdalen College, University of Oxford. Dr. Francis’ research group is centred on understanding how paediatric solid tumours and haematological malignancies interact with the immune system and suppress the immune response. The laboratory is co-supervised with Dr Carmela De Santo. Research studies are carried out in collaboration with a number of local, national and international research collaborators. Clinical trials based on this laboratory’s research are being established in partnership with pharmaceutical companies to try and improve patient outcomes.

His publications are as follows:
Mussai F,* Egan S, Hunter S, Webber H, Fisher J, Wheat R, McConville C, Wheeler K, Bendle G, Aderson J, Chesler L, De Santo C. Neuroblastoma arginase activity creates an immunosuppressive microenvironment, impairing autologous and engineered immunity. Cancer Research. 2015 (epub).
Mussai F,* Egan S, Higginbotham-Jones J, Pery T, Beggs A, Loke J, Pratt G, Lo A, Ng M, Kearns P, Cheng P, De Santo C. Arginine dependence of acute myeloid leukaemia blast proliferation: a novel therapeutic target. Blood. 2015; 125(15):2386-96.
Mussai F,* Yap C, Mitchell C, Kearns P. Challenges of clinical trial design for targeted agents against pediatric leukaemias. Frontiers in Paediatric Oncology 4;374.
Mussai FJ, De Santo C, Abu-Dayyeh I, Booth S, Quek L, McEwen-Smith R Qureshi A, Dazzi F, Vyas P, Cerundolo V. 2013. Acute myeloid leukaemia creates an arginase-dependent immunosuppressive microenvironment. Blood; 122(5):749-58Commentary: Marcucci G Blood 2013 122:620-621 and Haznedaroglu Blood (August 26 2013).
Mussai F,De Santo C, Cerundolo V. (2012), Interaction between invariant NKT cells and Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells in cancer patients: evidence and therapeutic opportunities. Journal of Immunotherapy, 35: 449-59.
Fitzgerald DJ, Moskatel E, Ben-Josef G, Traini R, Tendler T, Sharma A, Antignani A, Mussai F, Wayne A, Kreitman RJ, Pastan I. (2011), Enhancing immunotoxin cell-killing activity via combination therapy with ABT-737. Leukemia and Lymphoma, 52: 79-81.
El-Mallawany NK, Geller L, Bollard CM, Wistinghausen B, Mussai F, Wayne AS, Alobeid B, Cairo MS. (2011) Long-term remission in a child with refractory EBV+ hydro vacciniforme-like T-cell lymphoma through sequential EBV+ related allogenic hematopoietic SCT followed by donor-derived EBV-specific cytotoxic T-lymphocyte immunotherapy. Bone Marrow Transplantation, 46: 759-761.