The immune system vs. cancer | Jedd Wolchok | TEDxTimesSquare

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. When you hear of a leader changing the way millions of people look at a problem. Especially a problem like cancer, then you know they are pushing boundaries. As Chief of Melanoma and Immunotherapy at Memorial Sloan Kettering, Dr. Wolcchok is the lead Investigator looking at ways to unlock the Immune System to fight cancer. Dr. Wolchok is currently Chief of the Melanoma and Immunotherapeutics Service, Associate Attending Physician at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) with an expertise in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. His additional appointments include: Head of the Swim Across America Laboratory, one of the foremost immunotherapy and melanoma research groups in the country; Associate Director of the Ludwig Center for Cancer Immunotherapy. Dr. Wolchok has helped establish MSKCC as a leader in the discovery and treatment of cancers with novel immunotherapies. Dr. Wolchok was instrumental in the clinical development leading to the approval of ipilimumab for advanced melanoma. He also leads the MSKCC Immune Monitoring Facility, a world-renowned full-time core dedicated to the pre-clinical and clinical cellular, serological and pathological monitoring of clinical trials of new immunotherapeutic approaches. Currently, he is Principal Investigator of numerous ongoing clinical trials at MSKCC in the area of immunotherapy. In addition, I supervise an R01-funded basic science laboratory which is focused on investigating novel immunotherapeutic agents in pre-clinical mouse models. In 2011, I established the Immunotherapeutics Clinical Core, a specialized phase 1-2 outpatient unit at MSKCC that is focused on the conduct of novel immunotherapy trials, with a specific emphasis on pharmacodynamic biomarker identification. This group treats patients with a broad spectrum of malignancies. About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)