Dr. Peter Westcott Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA

Inflammation and stem cell plasticity in colon cancer progressionand therapy resistance

Hosted by: Pekka Katajisto and Pauliina Kallio

Dr. Westcott is an Assistant Professor at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. His group explores how tumors coevolve with the immune system and how immune responses shape cancer progression. Using innovative mouse models, Dr. Westcott investigates the mechanisms underlying immune evasion, T-cell dysfunction, and the evolution of tumor-specific neoantigens, with a particular focus on the transition from benign lesions to malignant tumors. Recent work from Dr. Westcott has revealed a surprising role for T cells in promoting the progression of colon cancer, highlighting how inflammation can reshape tissue states and facilitate malignant transformation. His interdisciplinary research combines cancer biology, immunology, and systems biology to uncover new mechanisms of tumor evolution and identify potential therapeutic opportunities.

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Recent publications:

Wu, B, Chang, J, Singh, P, Hostetler, A, Xiang, Y, Guo, S, Wang, FY, Zhong, JJ, Leifer, BS, Schiavoni, RP, Choudhary, A, Westcott, PMK, Koehler, AN. Small molecule modulators of TOX protein to re-invigorate T cell activity. bioRxiv (2025)

Wu, B, Koehler, AN, Westcott, PMK. New opportunities to overcome T cell dysfunction: the role of transcription factors and how to target them. Trends in Biochemical Sciences 49(11): 1014-1029 (2024)

Romero, R, Chu, T, González Robles, TJ, Smith, P, Xie, Y, Kaur, H, Yoder, S, Zhao, H, Mao, C, Kang, W, Pulina, MV, Lawrence, KE, Gopalan, A, Zaidi, S, Yoo, K, Choi, J, Fan, N, Gerstner, O, Karthaus, WR, DeStanchina, E, Ruggles, KV, Westcott, PMK, Chaligné, R, Pe’er, D, Sawyers, C. The neuroendocrine transition in prostate cancer is dynamic and dependent on ASCL1. Nature Cancer 5: 1641–1659 (2024)

Goto, N, Westcott, PMK, Goto, S, Imada, S, Taylor, MS, Eng, G, Braverman, J, Deshpande, V, Jacks, T, Agudo, J, Yilmaz, OH. SOX17 enables immune evasion of early colorectal adenomas and cancers. Nature 627: 636-645 (2024)