From Biological Limits to Intelligent Immunity with Kole Roybal, PhD

What if our immune cells could be reprogrammed to sense, decide and act—outsmarting even the most elusive tumors?

In this episode of From Bench to Fireside Kole Roybal, PhD, Director of the Parker Institute of Cancer Immunotherapy Center at UCSF, joins PICI Chief Scientific Officer John Connolly, PhD, to break down how engineered immune cells are moving from the lab to the clinic—and changing how we approach solid tumors. They discuss how technologies like SynNotch and SNIPR are giving immune cells programmable intelligence—and how PICI’s collaborative model helped accelerate these innovations from discovery to patient-ready therapies.

Along the way, Dr. Roybal reflects on mentorship, team-building and how engineered immunity could reshape medicine far beyond cancer.

—

From Bench to Fireside™ is a podcast from the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) that takes you from behind the lab bench to the frontiers of cancer research. Each episode features an interview with members of the PICI Network, pioneers in cancer immunotherapy and leaders at world-renowned cancer research institutions. Throughout the conversations, these experts weigh in on the potential of the human immune system to target and eradicate cancer cells, from the latest breakthroughs in immuno-oncology to their impact on patients. Along the way, they unpack the hurdles encountered and the opportunities that lie ahead.

Tune in to hear from scientific leaders who stand at the forefront of developing breakthrough immune therapies with the goal of turning all cancers into curable diseases. From Bench to Fireside™ is produced by the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy. Follow PICI on LinkedIn, X @parkerici or visit www.parkerici.org.