Borje S. Andersson, M.D., Ph.D.
Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, Division of Cancer Medicine
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Professor, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Adjunct Professor, University of Houston College of Pharmacy, Houston, TX
Research Interests
Over the last several years I have focused my research interest on 1) development of less toxic and more efficacious pretransplant conditioning therapy, and 2) improving our understanding of leukemic cell resistance to bifunctional DNA-alkylating agents.
In reference to the first issue, our group developed IV Busulfan, the first cytotoxic agent formulation ever to be approved by the FDA for use in pretransplant conditioning therapy. Further, our combination of once daily IV Busulfan and Fludarabine has rapidly become a new national standard for pretransplant treatment for allogeneic stem cell transplantation for patients with myeloid malignancies. We are now evaluating the systematic use of pharmacokinetically (PK)-guided busulfan delivery to further optimize systemic drug exposure to further improve the treatment. More recent developments include the incorporation of newer nucleoside analogs such as clofarabine and gemcitabine in the pretransplant treatment programs. The development of these new, so-called reduced toxicity, conditioning programs has not only dramatically improved the safety of stem cell transplantation, but also serves as "platform technology" that allows incorporation and testing of new concepts such as e.g. post-transplant maintenance therapy for maintenance of remissions in high-risk patient populations.
In reference to 2) the translational laboratory program includes studies of molecular mechanisms of inherent leukemic cell resistance to the alkylating agensts busulfan and cyclophosphamide in both human cell lines with experimentally-acquired resistance to these agents, and studies of cell samples from patients treated on our clinical programs based on busulfan and cyclophosphamide. We have identified a series of gene messages that are of importance for alkylating agent action, or lack thereof, in leukemic cells. The ultimate goal is to incorporate this newfound knowledge into the therapy, such that treatment failure due to cellular resistance to the pretransplant conditioning drugs can be avoided, either by using alternative, non-cross resistant drugs, or by the addition of agents that utilize cellular drug resistance mechanisms to instead trigger cell death.
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 1981 | Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, SWE, PHD, Medicine |
| 1977 | Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, SWE, MD, Medicine |
| 1973 | Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, SWE, MB, Medicine |
Postgraduate Training
| 1981-1984 | Fellow in Developmental Therapeutics, Division of Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
| 1979-1981 | Resident in Hematology, Department of Internal Medicine, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm |
| 1977-1979 | Internship in Internal Medicine and Psychiatry, Karolinska Hospital and South Hospital, Stockholm |
| 1977-1979 | Internship in Internal Medicine, Surgery, Anesthesia and Family Medicine, Soderhamn Hospital, Soderhamn |
Board Certifications
| 1991 | Medical Oncology (Sweden) |
| 1987 | Internal Medicine (BE) |
| 1987 | Internal Medicine (Sweden) |
| 1987 | Hematology (Sweden) |
Experience & Service
Academic Appointments
Associate Professor of Medicine and Associate Internist, Department of Dept. of Hematology, The University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 1991 - 1997
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Associate Medical Director Cord Blood Bank, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2010 - 2019
Chairman, Conflict of Interest Committee, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2007 - 2009
Past Chairman, Faculty Senate, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2006 - 2007
Chair of the Faculty Senate, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2005 - 2006
Associate Medical Director, Department of Stem Cell Processing Laboratory, Dept. of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 1990 - 2019
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Valdez BC, Zander AR, Song G, Murray D, Nieto Y, Li Y, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. Synergistic Cytotoxicity of Gemcitabine, Clofarabine and Edelfosine in Lymphoma Cell Lines. Blood Cancer J 4:e171, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24413065.
- Oran B, Popat U, Andersson B, Champlin R. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for myelodysplastic syndromes. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk 13 Suppl 2:S282-8, 2013. PMID: 24290213.
- Hassan M, Andersson BS. Role of pharmacogenetics in busulfan/cyclophosphamide conditioning therapy prior to hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Pharmacogenomics 14(1):75-87, 2013. PMID: 23252950.
- Kebriaei P, Basset R, Ledesma C, Ciurea S, Parmar S, Shpall EJ, Hosing C, Khouri I, Qazilbash M, Popat U, Alousi A, Nieto Y, Jones RB, de Lima M, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. Clofarabine Combined with Busulfan Provides Excellent Disease Control in Adult Patients with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Undergoing Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 18(12):1819-26, 2012. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 22750645.
- Valdez BC, Nieto Y, Murray D, Li Y, Wang G, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. Epigenetic Modifiers Enhance the Synergistic Cytotoxicity of Combined Nucleoside Analog-DNA Alkylating Agents in Lymphoma Cell Lines. Exp Hematol 40(10):800-10, 2012. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 22687754.
- Valdez BC, Murray D, Nieto Y, Li Y, Wang G, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. Synergistic cytotoxicity of the DNA alkylating agent busulfan, nucleoside analogs and SAHA in lymphoma cell lines. Leuk Lymphoma 53(5):973-81, 2012. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 22023523.
- Alatrash G, de Lima M, Hamerschlak N, Pelosini M, Wang X, Xiao L, Kerbauy F, Chiattone A, Rondon G, Qazilbash MH, Giralt SA, de Padua Silva L, Hosing C, Kebriaei P, Zhang W, Nieto Y, Saliba RM, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. Myeloablative reduced-toxicity IV busulfan-fludarabine and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant for patients with acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome in the sixth through eighth decades of life. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 17(10):1490-6, 2011. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 21338705.
- Gulbis AM, Culotta KS, Jones RB, Andersson BS. Busulfan and Metronidazole: An Often Forgotten but Significant Drug Interaction. Ann Pharmacother 45(7-8):e39, 2011. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 21730282.
- Andersson BS, Valdez BC, de Lima M, Wang X, Thall PF, Worth LL, Popat U, Madden T, Hosing C, Alousi A, Rondon G, Kebriaei P, Shpall EJ, Jones RB, Champlin RE. Clofarabine±Fludarabine with Once Daily IV Busulfan as Pretransplant Conditioning Therapy for Advanced Myeloid Leukemia and MDS. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 17(6):893-900, 2011. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20946966.
- Champlin R, Jabbour E, Kebriaei P, Anderlini P, Andersson B, de Lima M. Allogeneic stem cell transplantation for chronic myeloid leukemia resistant to tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk 11 Suppl 1:S96-100, 2011. e-Pub 2011. PMID: 22035758.
- Valdez BC, Li Y, Murray D, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. The synergistic cytotoxicity of clofarabine, fludarabine and busulfan in AML cells involves ATM pathway activation and chromatin remodeling. Biochem Pharmacol 81(2):222-32, 2011. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20933509.
- Parmar S, Andersson BS, Couriel D, Munsell MF, Fernandez-Vina M, Jones RB, Shpall EJ, Popat U, Anderlini P, Giralt S, Alousi A, Cano P, Bosque D, Hosing C, Silva Lde P, Westmoreland M, Wathen JK, Berry D, Champlin RE, de Lima MJ. Prophylaxis of Graft-Versus-Host Disease in Unrelated Donor Transplantation With Pentostatin, Tacrolimus, and Mini-Methotrexate: A Phase I/II Controlled, Adaptively Randomized Study. J Clin Oncol 29(3):294-302, 2011. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 21149654.
- Valdez BC, Andersson BS. Interstrand crosslink inducing agents in pretransplant conditioning therapy for hematologic malignancies. Environ Mol Mutagen 51(6):659-68, 2010. PMID: 20577993.
- Valdez BC, Li Y, Murray D, Corn P, Champlin RE, Andersson BS. 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine sensitizes busulfan-resistant myeloid leukemia cells by regulating expression of genes involved in cell cycle checkpoint and apoptosis. Leuk Res 34(3):364-72, 2010. e-Pub 2009. PMID: 19732952.
- Andersson BS, de Lima M, Thall PF, Madden T, Russell JA, Champlin RE. Reduced-toxicity conditioning therapy with allogeneic stem cell transplantation for acute leukemia. Curr Opin Oncol 21 Suppl 1:S11-5, 2009. PMID: 19561406.
- Geddes M, Kangarloo SB, Naveed F, Quinlan D, Chaudhry MA, Stewart D, Savoie ML, Bahlis NJ, Brown C, Storek J, Andersson BS, Russell JA. High busulfan exposure is associated with worse outcomes in a daily i.v. busulfan and fludarabine allogeneic transplant regimen. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 14(2):220-28, 2008. PMID: 18215782.
- Andersson BS, Mroue M, Britten RA, Murray D. The role of DNA damage in the resistance of human chronic myeloid leukemia cells to cyclophosphamide analogues. Cancer Res 54(20):5394-5400, 1994. PMID: 7923171.
- Andersson BS, Bergerheim US, Collins VP, Childs C, Beran M, Sen S, Arden K, Pathak S, Siciliano MJ, Ost A, et al. KBM-3, an in vitro model of human acute myelomonocytic leukemia. Exp Hematol 20(3):361-67, 1992. PMID: 1568450.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified October 30, 2023