Soma Ghosh, PhD
Department of Thoracic-Head & Neck Med Onc, Division of Cancer Medicine
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Instructor, Department of Thoracic, Head & Neck Medical Oncology Research, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Instructor, Dept. of Thoracic/ Head & Neck Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Research Interests
My research is driven by a fundamental question: how do Rb-deficient cancers—some of the most aggressive and treatment-resistant tumors—rewire their mitotic machinery and immune microenvironment to survive? Over the past 15 years, this question has shaped a translational research program that connects mechanistic cancer biology with immune modulation, moving discoveries from cell models to immunocompetent systems, and ultimately toward therapeutic strategies with real clinical potential.
Defining a Mitotic Vulnerability in Rb-Deficient HPV-Positive Cancers (2021–2023)
My work began with a mechanistic puzzle in HPV-positive, Rb-deficient cancers: these tumors simultaneously experience high mitotic stress and yet continue to divide and survive. I discovered that they maintain a delicate balance between the mitotic checkpoint protein MAD2L1 (Mad2) and its regulator TRIP13—an equilibrium that allows them to bypass spindle checkpoint activation and complete mitosis despite the absence of Rb.
Through a series of studies, I demonstrated that Rb-deficient cancer cells, which overexpress Mad2, become uniquely dependent on Aurora kinase A (AURKA) for mitotic exit. When TRIP13 is suppressed, Mad2 activity rises further, activating the spindle assembly checkpoint, driving mitotic arrest, and dramatically deepening the cells’ dependency on AURKA for survival. The combination of TRIP13 depletion with Aurora A inhibition triggers extensive apoptosis and immunogenic cell death specifically in Rb-deficient cancer cells while sparing normal cells that retain Rb expression. This specificity provides an unusually wide therapeutic window—an uncommon and promising feature for translational development.
These findings formed the foundation of two major grants: an R01 proposal (submitted with my mentor, Dr. Faye Johnson) and a U54 grant we were awarded based directly on my experimental framework. The R01 centers on defining the mechanistic basis of synthetic lethality between TRIP13 and AURKA and evaluating the immunologic consequences of this combination. The U54 expands this trajectory toward drug development by supporting the creation of a first-in-class TRIP13 inhibitor. I lead the work involving PSCC PDX models, examining patterns of Rb, Mad2, and TRIP13 expression across diverse patient-derived tumors.
Our collaboration with a medicinal chemist has already initiated structure-guided development of TRIP13 inhibitors—an essential step toward in vivo validation and, eventually, clinical translation.
Bridging Cell-Cycle Biology and Tumor Immunology (2024–2025)
My current research builds on the realization that cell-cycle stress is not just a vulnerability but also a powerful immune-modulating event. In an Rb-deficient, PD-1–resistant lung cancer model, we found that dual inhibition of AURKA and TRIP13 does more than disrupt mitosis—it reshapes the tumor immune microenvironment in ways that counteract immune resistance.
This combination boosts dendritic cell activation, reduces myeloid-derived suppressor cells, increases CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T-cell infiltration, and enhances effector function within the tumor. These results suggest that precisely targeting mitotic vulnerabilities can “reignite” immune responses in tumors that otherwise evade immunotherapy. This insight has broadened my research vision: I now aim to understand how Rb loss, p53 mutation, and chromosomal instability alter antigen presentation, innate sensing pathways, and T-cell engagement—and to exploit these changes through rational therapeutic combinations.
Research Productivity, Grants, and Impact
Collectively, this work has resulted in five original research papers, numerous abstracts, and multiple national recognitions including AACR awards. I have secured one CPRIT-funded project and three additional small grants, and contributed key data and conceptual frameworks to our awarded U54 grant and submitted R01. These accomplishments reflect the momentum of a research program that is maturing into full independence.
Ultimately, my goal is to translate fundamental insights about mitotic regulation and immune crosstalk into therapies that meaningfully improve outcomes for patients with Rb-deficient cancers and other cancers.
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2014 | Institute Of Nuclear Medicine & Allied Sciences (INMAS), DRDO/Bharathiar University, Delhi, Delhi, IN, Department of Life Sciences (Radiation Oncology), PhD |
| 2006 | University of Delhi, Delhi, Delhi, IN, Zoology, Masters of Science |
| 2004 | University of Delhi, Delhi, Delhi, IN, Zoology, Bachelor of Science |
Postgraduate Training
| 2020-2023 | Postgraduate Fellow, Head & Neck Cancer, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas |
| 2016-2020 | Postgraduate Fellow, Molecular Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot |
| 2007-2007 | Research Trainee, Erythropoietin (EPO), Cadila Pharmaceuticals, Ahmedabad, Gujarat |
Experience & Service
Other Professional Positions
Team Lead, Oncology, Evalueserve India Pvt Ltd, Gurgaon, Haryana, 2016 - 2016
Senior Analyst, Oncology Drugs, Smart Analyst, Gurgaon, Haryana, 2014 - 2016
Knowledge Intern, Megatrends, Boston Consulting Group, Gurgaon, Haryana, 2014 - 2014
Intramural Institutional Committee Activities
Organizer, Annual Research Retreat - THNMO, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2022 - Present
Honors & Awards
| 2023 | Head and Neck Cancer Conference 2023 Scholar-in-Training award, AACR-AHNS |
| 2023 | AACR 2023 – Scholar-in-training Award from Margaret Foti Foundation, AACR |
| 2022 | Best Paper Award 2022 in Cancer Research, ibidi |
| 2022 | AACR 2022 – Scholar-in-training Award from Abbvie, AACR |
| 2016 - 2020 | Deans fellowship for Post-Doctoral program, Weizmann Inst. of Science |
Professional Memberships
Selected Presentations & Talks
Local Presentations
- 2025. Targeted inhibition of Aurora kinase A promotes immune checkpoint inhibition efficacy in human papillomavirus-driven cancers. Invited. THNMO Departmental Seminar. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2024. Novel Targeted Therapy for Rb-Deficient Cancers: Dual Inhibition of AURKA and TRIP13 using Rb as a Predictive Biomarker. Invited. THNMO Departmental Seminar. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2023. Novel combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition demonstrated extensive DNA damage and immunogenic cell death in RB-deficient cancers. Invited. THNMO Departmental Seminar. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2023. Novel combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition demonstrated extensive DNA damage and immunogenic cell death in RB-deficient cancers. Invited. THNMO Departmental Annual Retreat 2023. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2022. Rb deficient HPV+ HNSCC experienced enhanced sensitivity to aurora kinase inhibitors by altering the balance of MAD2 and TRIP13 levels. Invited. THNMO Departmental Annual Retreat. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2022. Rb deficient HPV+ HNSCC experienced enhanced sensitivity to aurora kinase inhibitors by altering the balance of MAD2 and TRIP13 levels. Invited. THNMO Departmental Seminar. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2021. Aurora kinase inhibition enhances cell death in Rb deficient HPV+ cancer cells. Invited. THNMO Departmental Presentation. Houston, Texas, US.
National Presentations
- 2025. Aurora-A inhibition sensitizes HPV-driven cancers to anti-CTLA-4 immunotherapy by modulating the tumor immune microenvironment. Poster. AACR 2025, US.
- 2025. Novel Targeted Therapy for HPV-driven Cancers: Dual Inhibition of AURKA and TRIP13 using Rb as a Predictive Biomarker. Invited. G-RISE Program UPR Medical Sciences Seminar Series- 2025, US.
- 2023. Novel combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition demonstrated extensive DNA damage and immunogenic cell death in RB-deficient cancers. Poster. AACR-AHNS Head and Neck Cancer Conference 2023, US.
- 2023. Novel combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition demonstrated extensive DNA damage and immunogenic cell death in RB-deficient cancers. Poster. AACR 2023, US.
- 2022. Rb deficient HPV+ HNSCC experienced enhanced sensitivity to aurora kinase inhibitors by altering the balance of MAD2 and TRIP13 levels. Poster. AACR 2022, US.
Grant & Contract Support
| Date: | 2025 - 2028 |
| Title: | Synthetic lethality of Aurora kinase A and TRIP13 in Rb-deficient cancers |
| Funding Source: | CPRIT |
| Role: | Key |
| Date: | 2025 - 2026 |
| Title: | Gromada foundation for head and Neck cancer for early investigators |
| Funding Source: | Gromada foundation |
| Role: | PI |
| Date: | 2024 - 2025 |
| Title: | UT SPORE in Lung Cancer Enhancement Research Proposals |
| Funding Source: | UT SPORE |
| Role: | PI |
| Date: | 2024 - 2025 |
| Title: | Design and development of novel TRIP13 inhibitors for cancer treatment |
| Funding Source: | PUERTO RICO SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND RESEARCH TRUST |
| Role: | Key |
| Date: | 2023 - Present |
| Title: | Synthetic lethality of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A in HPV-driven cancers |
| Funding Source: | CPRIT |
| Role: | PI |
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Shah PA, Mazumdar T, Ghosh S, Yapindi L, Powell RT, Park YS, Shen L, Fernandez AM, Stephan CC, Wang J, Sikora AG, Kazi J, Frederick MJ, Johnson FM. Polo-like kinase 1 inactivation enhances PI3K inhibition-mediated apoptosis of NOTCH1-mutant head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Cancer Lett 625:217814, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 40412794.
- Sammons RM, Ghosh S, Yapindi L, Cho EJ, Johnson FM, Dalby KN. Advancing the development of TRIP13 inhibitors: A high-throughput screening approach. SLAS Discov 33:100233, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 40228580.
- Johnson FM, O'Hara MP, Yapindi L, Jiang P, Tran HT, Reuben A, Xiao W, Gillison ML, Sun X, Khalaf A, Lee JJ, Sastry JK, Ghosh S. Phase I/II Study of the Aurora Kinase A Inhibitor Alisertib and Pembrolizumab in Refractory, Rb-Deficient Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinomas. Clin Cancer Res 31(3):479-490, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 39589337.
- Ghosh S, O'Hara MP, Sinha P, Mazumdar T, Yapindi L, Sastry JK, Johnson FM. Targeted inhibition of Aurora kinase A promotes immune checkpoint inhibition efficacy in human papillomavirus-driven cancers. J Immunother Cancer 13(1), 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 39773561.
- Shah PA, Sambandam V, Fernandez AM, Zhao H, Mazumdar T, Shen L, Wang Q, Ahmed KM, Ghosh S, Frederick MJ, Wang J, Johnson FM. Sustained Aurora Kinase B Expression Confers Resistance to PI3K Inhibition in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Cancer Res 82(23):4444-4456, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36169922.
- Noronha A, Belugali Nataraj N, Lee JS, Zhitomirsky B, Oren Y, Oster S, Lindzen M, Mukherjee S, Will R, Ghosh S, Simoni-Nieves A, Verma A, Chatterjee R, Borgoni S, Robinson W, Sinha S, Brandis A, Kerr DL, Wu W, Sekar A, Giri S, Chung Y, Drago-Garcia D, Danysh BP, Lauriola M, Fiorentino M, Ardizzoni A, Oren M, Blakely CM, Ezike J, Wiemann S, Parida L, Bivona TG, Aqeilan RI, Brugge JS, Regev A, Getz G, Ruppin E, Yarden Y. AXL and Error-Prone DNA Replication Confer Drug Resistance and Offer Strategies to Treat EGFR-Mutant Lung Cancer. Cancer Discov 12(11):2666-2683, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35895872.
- Ghosh S, Mazumdar T, Xu W, Powell RT, Stephan C, Shen L, Shah PA, Pickering CR, Myers JN, Wang J, Frederick MJ, Johnson FM. Combined TRIP13 and Aurora Kinase Inhibition Induces Apoptosis in Human Papillomavirus-Driven Cancers. Clin Cancer Res 28(20):4479-4493, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35972731.
- Nataraj NB, Noronha A, Lee JS, Ghosh S, Mohan Raju HR, Sekar A, Zuckerman B, Lindzen M, Tarcitano E, Srivastava S, Selitrennik M, Livneh I, Drago-Garcia D, Rueda O, Caldas C, Lev S, Geiger T, Ciechanover A, Ulitsky I, Seger R, Ruppin E, Yarden Y. Nucleoporin-93 reveals a common feature of aggressive breast cancers: robust nucleocytoplasmic transport of transcription factors. Cell Rep 38(8):110418, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35196484.
- Uribe ML, Dahlhoff M, Batra RN, Nataraj NB, Haga Y, Drago-Garcia D, Marrocco I, Sekar A, Ghosh S, Vaknin I, Lebon S, Kramarski L, Tsutsumi Y, Choi I, Rueda OM, Caldas C, Yarden Y. TSHZ2 is an EGF-regulated tumor suppressor that binds to the cytokinesis regulator PRC1 and inhibits metastasis. Sci Signal 14(688), 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34158398.
- Ghosh S, Nataraj NB, Noronha A, Patkar S, Sekar A, Mukherjee S, Winograd-Katz S, Kramarski L, Verma A, Lindzen M, Garcia DD, Green J, Eisenberg G, Gil-Henn H, Basu A, Lender Y, Weiss S, Oren M, Lotem M, Geiger B, Ruppin E, Yarden Y. PD-L1 recruits phospholipase C and enhances tumorigenicity of lung tumors harboring mutant forms of EGFR. Cell Rep 35(8):109181, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34038737.
- Lindzen M, Ghosh S, Noronha A, Drago D, Nataraj NB, Leitner O, Carvalho S, Zmora E, Sapoznik S, Shany KB, Levanon K, Aderka D, Ramirez BS, Dahlhoff M, McNeish I, Yarden Y. Targeting autocrine amphiregulin robustly and reproducibly inhibits ovarian cancer in a syngeneic model: roles for wildtype p53. Oncogene 40(21):3665-3679, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33941851.
- Marrocco I, Romaniello D, Vaknin I, Drago-Garcia D, Oren R, Uribe ML, Belugali Nataraj N, Ghosh S, Eilam R, Salame TM, Lindzen M, Yarden Y. Upfront admixing antibodies and EGFR inhibitors preempts sequential treatments in lung cancer models. EMBO Mol Med 13(4):e13144, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33660397.
- Romaniello D, Marrocco I, Belugali Nataraj N, Ferrer I, Drago-Garcia D, Vaknin I, Oren R, Lindzen M, Ghosh S, Kreitman M, Kittel JC, Gaborit N, Bergado Baez G, Sanchez B, Eilam R, Pikarsky E, Paz-Ares L, Yarden Y. Targeting HER3, a Catalytically Defective Receptor Tyrosine Kinase, Prevents Resistance of Lung Cancer to a Third-Generation EGFR Kinase Inhibitor. Cancers (Basel) 12(9), 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32847130.
- Srivastava S, Nataraj NB, Sekar A, Ghosh S, Bornstein C, Drago-Garcia D, Roth L, Romaniello D, Marrocco I, David E, Gilad Y, Lauriola M, Rotkopf R, Kimchi A, Haga Y, Tsutsumi Y, Mirabeau O, Surdez D, Zinovyev A, Delattre O, Kovar H, Amit I, Yarden Y. ETS Proteins Bind with Glucocorticoid Receptors: Relevance for Treatment of Ewing Sarcoma. Cell Rep 29(1):104-117.e4, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31577941.
- Maron R, Schechter B, Nataraj NB, Ghosh S, Romaniello D, Marrocco I, Noronha A, Carvalho S, Yarden Y, Sela M. Inhibition of a pancreatic cancer model by cooperative pairs of clinically approved and experimental antibodies. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 513(1):219-225, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 30952434.
- Romaniello D, Mazzeo L, Mancini M, Marrocco I, Noronha A, Kreitman M, Srivastava S, Ghosh S, Lindzen M, Salame TM, Onn A, Bar J, Yarden Y. A Combination of Approved Antibodies Overcomes Resistance of Lung Cancer to Osimertinib by Blocking Bypass Pathways. Clin Cancer Res 24(22):5610-5621, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29967248.
- Kumar A, Ghosh S, Chandna S. Evidence for microRNA-31 dependent Bim-Bax interaction preceding mitochondrial Bax translocation during radiation-induced apoptosis. Sci Rep 5:15923, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26514984.
- Ghosh S, Kumar A, Chandna S. Connexin-43 downregulation in G2/M phase enriched tumour cells causes extensive low-dose hyper-radiosensitivity (HRS) associated with mitochondrial apoptotic events. Cancer Lett 363(1):46-59, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25843295.
- Ghosh S, Kumar A, Tripathi RP, Chandna S. Connexin-43 regulates p38-mediated cell migration and invasion induced selectively in tumour cells by low doses of gamma-radiation in an ERK-1/2-independent manner. Carcinogenesis 35(2):383-95, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24045413.
- Ghosh S, Kumar A, Tripathi RP, Chandna S. Cellular adhesion protein Connexin43 regulates low dose radiation-induced MAPK pathway: a potential target for radio-modification. Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics, 2012. e-Pub 2012.
Review Articles
- Ghosh S, Shah PA, Johnson FM. Novel Systemic Treatment Modalities Including Immunotherapy and Molecular Targeted Therapy for Recurrent and Metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Int J Mol Sci , 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35887235.
- Ghosh S. Safety Evaluation of Genetically Modified Food: Indian Regulatory Overview. VAK, 2007. e-Pub 2007.
Abstracts
- Ghosh S, O’Hara MP, Mazumdar T, Yapindi L, Shen L, Wang J, Frederick MJ, Sastry JK, Johnson FM. Aurora-A inhibition sensitizes HPV-driven cancers to anti-CTLA-4 immunotherapy by modulating the tumor immune microenvironment. AACR Annual Meeting 2025, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- Yapindi L, Ghosh S, Shen L, Wang J, Johnson FM. Exploiting Rb-deficiency: Dual inhibition of TRIP13 and Aurora A as a path to mitotic catastrophe. AACR Annual Meeting 2025, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- Yapindi L, Ghosh S, Mazumdar T, Johnson FM. The combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition caused cell cycle specific DNA damage and death in Rb-deficient cancers. AACR Special Conference in Cancer Research: DNA Damage Repair: From Basic Science to Future Clinical Application, 2024. e-Pub 2024.
- Sinha P, Ghosh S, Johnson FM, Sastry JK. Preclinical evaluation of immunomodulatory effects of aurora kinase inhibition in HPV+ cancers. AACR Annual Meeting 2023, 2023. e-Pub 2023.
- Ghosh S, Mazumdar T, Yapindi L, Sinha P, Sastry J, Johnson FM. Novel combination of TRIP13 and Aurora kinase A inhibition demonstrated extensive DNA damage and immunogenic cell death in RB-deficient cancers. AACR Annual Meeting 2023, 2023. e-Pub 2023.
- Ghosh S, Mazumdar T, Xu W, Powell RT, Stephan C, Shen L, Pickering CR, Wang J, Johnson FM. Rb deficient HPV+ HNSCC experienced enhanced sensitivity to aurora kinase inhibitors by altering the balance of MAD2 and TRIP13 levels. AACR Annual Meeting 2022, 2022. e-Pub 2022.
- Mazumdar T, Shen L, Xu W, Ghosh S, Powell RT, Stephan C, Pickering CR, Myers JN, Wang J, Johnson FM. Aurora kinase inhibitors cause cell death in HPV+ cells: A plausible treatment option for HPV+ cancers. AACR Annual Meeting 2021, 2021. e-Pub 2021.
- Ghosh S. Low dose gamma-radiation induces migration in U87 glioma cell line through a connexin-43 dependent, P38-mediated and erk-independent pathway. ICRB-2012 -International Conference on Radiation Biology on Cosmic Radiation to Cancer Therapeutics and 11th Biennial Meeting of the Indian Society of Radiation Biology, 2012. e-Pub 2012.
Book Chapters
- Ghosh S, Marrocco I, Yarden Y. Chapter One - Roles for receptor tyrosine kinases in tumor progression and implications for cancer treatment. In: Advances in Cancer Research. Elsevier, 2020.
- Chowdhury A, Sarkar S, Ghosh S, Noronha A, Chakraborti T, Chakraborti S. Oxidative Stress and Therapeutic Development in Lung Cancer. In: Oxidative Stress in Lung Diseases. Springer Nature, 2019.
- Animesh Chowdhury, Romaniello D, Ghosh S, Chakraborti T, Roy S, Chakraborti S. Protease, an Advance Therapeutic Target in Cancer. In: Pathophysiological Aspects of Proteases. Springer Nature, 2017.
Web Publications
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified July 22, 2026