Alan F. List

Alan F. List is a preeminent authority on myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), whose career at Moffitt Cancer Center spans more than 25 years and has produced some of the most impactful translational advances in MDS therapy. He led the pivotal clinical trials that established lenalidomide as the standard of care for transfusion-dependent MDS patients harboring the del(5q) chromosomal abnormality—a discovery that transformed the management of this molecularly defined subgroup. His work revealed that the immunomodulatory and anti-clonal mechanisms of lenalidomide in del(5q) MDS are distinct from its mechanisms in myeloma, pointing to haploinsufficiency of the CSNK1A1 gene on chromosome 5q as the molecular basis of therapeutic sensitivity. List built Moffitt's malignant hematology program into one of the nation's premier MDS clinical and research centers, attracting investigators and patients from across the United States and internationally. He has championed erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) as first-line therapy for lower-risk MDS patients with low endogenous erythropoietin levels, establishing predictive models for ESA response that guide their use. He has also led early trials of next-generation agents in MDS including luspatercept (an erythroid maturation agent), decitabine, and IDH-targeted therapies in higher-risk settings. Beyond Moffitt, List has contributed extensively to national policy and guidelines through NCCN, ASH, and ELN MDS committees, and has served as a principal investigator in numerous cooperative group and industry-sponsored trials. His translational research program has consistently linked genomic and functional biology—including RNA splicing mutations (SF3B1) and innate immune pathway activation—to MDS pathogenesis and therapeutic response, ensuring that his clinical findings are embedded in a mechanistic framework.