Understanding why the immune system can go into overdrive in blood cancer

Our immune system works to fight infection and keep us healthy. In some people with blood cancer, the immune system can become dangerously overactive, causing a condition called haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). When this happens, immune cells fail to switch off properly, triggering a serious inflammatory response that can affect vital organs. Very little is understood about HLH and why it develops in some people with blood cancer and not others. Understanding what goes wrong in the bone marrow when HLH develops could help doctors better predict and treat this condition.

In this project, Dr Payne and her team will examine bone marrow samples from people with blood cancer who have developed HLH. Using a new specialised technology, they will be able to see where different cells are located within the bone marrow and how they interact with each other. This is particularly important for studying HLH, as the immune cells involved are difficult to identify. The team will look at samples taken at different stages of the disease, comparing bone marrow from when patients were first diagnosed with blood cancer to samples taken later when HLH developed. This will help them identify early warning signs and understand what triggers the immune system to become overactive. They will also look for new markers in the bone marrow that could help doctors identify patients at risk before they become seriously ill.

If successful, this research could help doctors identify people with blood cancer who are at risk of developing HLH at an earlier stage, allowing for faster treatment and better outcomes. In the longer term, a better understanding of what causes HLH could lead to new treatments specifically designed to prevent or manage this dangerous condition, benefiting people across a range of blood cancers.