Dr. Engleman's research is directed at understanding the role of the cellular immune system in cancer and other life threatening conditions and in evaluating the potential to manipulate immune cells for the treatment of these diseases. They have been particularly interested in dendritic cells (DC) and their “first generation” methods for isolating and arming human DC with tumor antigens provided the basis for the Sipuleucel-T (aka Provenge) vaccine that was approved by the FDA in 2010 for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. More recently, the lab has been studying functionally distinct DC populations, including DC that promote tumor formation and metastases, as well as DC that can induce anti-tumor immunity.