Dr. Lekha Mikkilineni

Biography

Lekha Mikkilineni is a board-certified medical oncologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine, specializing in Blood & Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy at Stanford University. With extensive experience treating blood and bone marrow cancers, her clinical focus includes multiple myeloma, plasma-cell leukemia, extramedullary myeloma, CAR T cell therapy, bispecific therapy, amyloidosis, POEMS syndrome, and Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia. Dr. Mikkilineni's research is centered on exploring novel CAR T-cell therapies for the treatment of multiple myeloma and defining the mechanisms of resistance to immunotherapy. She is particularly focused on understanding how to improve therapies for multiple myeloma patients with extramedullary disease and high-risk features. Prior to her appointment at Stanford, Dr. Mikkilineni led phase 1 CAR T-cell trials targeting BCMA and SLAMF7 at the National Cancer Institute. She has been recognized with the Conquer Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology for her research on SLAMF7 as a potential target for multiple myeloma, and has received multiple honors for her work at NCI. Dr. Mikkilineni completed her MD at Tulane University, followed by a residency in internal medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and fellowships in hematology/oncology and immunotherapy at the National Heart, Lung, Blood Institute/National Cancer Institute.

Research Interests

Experience