Jose Conejo-Garcia, MD, PhD, is one of the recipients of the 2026 Lotus Award from the Pershing Square Foundation. These awards support pioneering scientists advancing innovative ovarian cancer research across the U.S.
Conejo-Garcia's project, "Next-Generation off-the-shelf CAR γδ T cells for ovarian cancer immunotherapy," aims to develop a new, affordable, “off-the-shelf” immune cell therapy that can be prepared in advance and given to many patients without the need to manufacture a custom product for each individual.
"The Lotus Award will enable our team to complete a GMP-compliant protocol for the expansion and transduction of gamma delta (γδ) T cells derived from the extensive cord blood repository—comprising over 35,000 units—available to us at Duke University," Conejo-Garcia said on the Pershing Square Foundation announcement. "We anticipate that this work will provide a robust biological and manufacturing rationale for subsequent clinical trials. Ultimately, our goal is to render CAR T cell therapies substantially more affordable, logistically accessible for timely patient intervention, and—most critically—efficacious for individuals with recurrent, chemoresistant ovarian carcinoma."
Conejo-Garcia currently serves as a DCI member and professor in integrative immunobiology in the Duke University School of Medicine.
Read the full project details on the Pershing Square Foundation website.
