Speaker Profile
PMWC LUMINARY AWARD
M.D., Ph.D., Katy Rezvani, M.D., Ph.D., FRCP, FRCPath Vice President and Melvyn N. Klein Family Endowed Director, Institute for Cell Therapy Discovery & Innovation Barnts Family Distinguished Chair for Cancer Research Professor of Medicine Medical Director, Stem Cell Transplant and GMP Laboratories, MD Anderson Cancer Ctr.
Biography
Dr. Katy Rezvani is a pioneering physician scientist whose work has helped define and advance the field of engineered natural killer cell therapy. She has driven the development of cord blood-derived, off-the-shelf NK cell platforms from early discovery through manufacturing and clinical translation, helping establish a new class of cellular immunotherapies and a platform with the potential to expand access, improve scalability and reduce barriers to adoption.
Her group provided the first clinical evidence that CAR NK cells can induce meaningful anti-tumor responses with a favorable safety profile, a landmark advance that helped accelerate the field’s growth. She has since led efforts to enhance persistence, in vivo expansion and anti-tumor activity, advancing engineered NK cell therapies for both hematologic malignancies and solid tumors.
Beyond these scientific contributions, Dr. Rezvani has built one of the leading translational programs in cellular therapy, integrating discovery science, manufacturing and clinical investigation to accelerate the development of new treatments. Her work has helped move engineered NK cell therapy from promising concept to clinical reality and has played an important role in shaping the future of scalable cell therapy.
Through these contributions, Dr. Rezvani has helped broaden the impact of cellular immunotherapy and open new possibilities for patients.
Talk
Engineered NK Cells Expanding the Reach of Cellular Immunotherapy
This keynote will highlight the development of engineered NK cell therapies from discovery through clinical translation, including first-in-human CAR NK and TCR-NK cell studies. It will focus on strategies to enhance persistence, scalability and access, and discuss how off-the-shelf platforms are expanding the reach and impact of cellular immunotherapy for cancer and beyond.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2027 Silicon Valley
Track Chair:
Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Keynote: The Industrialization of Cell Therapy:From Autologous Pioneers to Allogeneic Frontiers
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Next Generation CAR-T Cell Therapies: Expanding Targets and Enhancing Designs
• Chair: Erin Harris Cell & Gene
• David Barrett, Kite Pharma
• Carl June, University of Pennsylvania
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
Keynote: Engineering the Future: Innovations in CAR-T Therapy Design
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs): Advances and Challenges in Solid Tumors
• Chair: Allison Betof Warner, Stanford University
• George Coukos, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
• Max Julve, Stanford
• Stephanie Goff, NIH/NCI
Allogeneic & In Vivo Cell Therapies: Manufacturing & Clinical Progress
• Chair: Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
• Zach Roberts, Allogene Therapeutics
• Adrian Bot, Capstan Therapeutics
• Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
Smart Scaling: Leverating AI & Automation to De-Risk Advanced Therapy Manufacturing
• Chair: Stacie Calad-Thomson
• Samuel Rodriques, FutureHouse
• Manuel Leonetti, Biohub
• Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
Designing Automated Platforms for Scalable Cell Therapy Manufacturing
• Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
In Vivo CAR Therapy: Immune Reprogramming Directly in Patients
• Daniel Getts, Myloid Therapeutics
Operationalizing Cell & Gene Therapy Trials in a Large Health System
•Snehit Prabhu, Stanford
Gene Editing & Synthetic Biology for Therapy
• Chair: Trevor Martin, Mammoth Biosciences
• Ken Drazan, ArsenalBio
• Lynn Seely, Lyell
• Kole T. Roybal, Parker Institute
• David Kirn, 4DMT




