Murphy to Receive AACR-CRI Lloyd J. Old Award in Cancer Immunology

Recognition honors pioneering discoveries that have paved the way for more effective cancer immunotherapies

WashU Medicine researcher Kenneth M. Murphy, MD, PhD, has been named the recipient of the 2026 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)-Cancer Research Institute (CRI) Lloyd J. Old Award in Cancer Immunology.

Murphy, the Eugene Opie First Centennial Professor in pathology and immunology at WashU Medicine and a researcher at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine, will be recognized at the AACR Annual Meeting 2026, which will be held April 17-22 in San Diego.

The Lloyd J. Old Award recognizes scientists whose outstanding research has had a major impact on our understanding of cancer.

“Dr. Murphy is an extraordinary and innovative immunologist,” said Margaret Foti, PhD, MD, chief executive officer of the AACR. “His discoveries have laid crucial groundwork for new advances in the treatment of cancer, thereby extending and saving countless lives. The AACR and CRI are thrilled to present him with this well-deserved award for enabling significant progress in the field of cancer immunology.”

Murphy’s groundbreaking work has shown how different types of dendritic cells, a kind of immune cell, develop and take on specialized jobs in controlling the body’s immune responses. He has uncovered the genetic “programs” that tell immature cells to become specific kinds of dendritic cells, including discovering how a gene called BATF3 helps create a type of dendritic cell that is especially good at activating “killer” T cells, which destroy infected or cancerous cells. His research has deepened our basic understanding of how the immune system recognizes threats and has helped guide new approaches to boosting the immune system’s attack on cancer, improving cancer immunotherapy.

“The Lloyd J. Old Award honors scientists whose work doesn’t just advance a field — it reshapes how we understand biology at its core,” said Alicia Zhou, PhD, chief executive officer at CRI. “Dr. Murphy’s discoveries have defined the rules by which dendritic cells orchestrate immune responses, providing a foundation that continues to inform how we design the next generation of cancer immunotherapies.”

Murphy is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. His previous honors include the CRI William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic Immunology, the American Association of Immunologists-Thermo Fisher Meritorious Career Award and the WashU Medicine Distinguished Investigator Award.

Murphy will deliver his award lecture, titled “DC subsets: Why so much specialization?”, on April 21 at 3 p.m. PT during the AACR annual meeting.

Learn more about his research.