John Maher

John Maher is a Clinical Senior Lecturer in Immunology at the Comprehensive Cancer Centre, King's College London. He leads the "CAR Mechanics" research group focused on developing cellular immunotherapy for malignancy, with significant contributions to cancer treatment research that align with UN Sustainable Development Goals for health and wellbeing.

His research focuses on:

• Design and testing of genetically delivered Chimeric Antigen Receptors (CAR) to re-target T-cell specificity against tumor antigens
• Pre-clinical testing of CARs targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen, MUC1, ErbB2, and other antigens across multiple cancer types
• Clinical applications in breast cancer, ovarian cancer, malignant mesothelioma, prostate cancer, lymphomas, acute myeloid leukemia, and pancreatic cancer
• Development of adoptive immunotherapy using ex-vivo expanded γδ T-cells

Dr. Maher's work has progressed from laboratory research to clinical application, with his first CAR-based immunotherapy trial initiated in 2015 for recurrent head and neck cancer. His recent publications reveal a strong focus on overcoming resistance mechanisms in solid tumors and optimizing CAR T-cell therapies for better efficacy in challenging cancer types.

His notable recognition includes the Health Foundation/Royal College of Pathologists senior clinician scientist research fellowship (2004). His research has resulted in numerous scientific publications and patents, with proprietary CAR technologies being developed through the spin-out company Leucid Bio.

He actively supervises students and researchers, with documented supervised work. His research is supported by multiple grants from Cancer Research UK, Medical Research Council, and various foundations. He maintains extensive collaborations with research groups at King's College London, St Bartholomew's Hospital, and Imperial College London.