Georg Lenz

Georg Lenz, MD is Director of the Department of Medicine A (Hematology, Oncology, Pneumology) and Professor of Medicine at the University of Münster, Germany, where he leads a world-leading research program in DLBCL molecular biology and targeted therapy. He is internationally recognized for his groundbreaking work — conducted in part during his tenure at the National Cancer Institute with Louis Staudt — characterizing the ABC (activated B-cell) versus GCB (germinal center B-cell) molecular subtypes of DLBCL, including the identification of chronic active BCR signaling, MYD88 L265P mutation, and CD79B mutation as key oncogenic drivers of ABC-DLBCL. His landmark studies in Science (2008) and NEJM demonstrated that constitutive activation of the BCR signaling cascade and NF-κB pathway is essential for ABC-DLBCL cell survival, established NF-κB addiction as a hallmark of this subtype, and provided the mechanistic rationale for BTK inhibitor trials in DLBCL. He was a co-investigator in the PHOENIX trial evaluating ibrutinib plus R-CHOP in newly diagnosed ABC-DLBCL. At Münster, Dr. Lenz has extended this work into comprehensive DLBCL genomic subclassification (contributing to the LymphGen classification of DLBCL genetic subtypes), novel BCR-targeting strategies, and translational-clinical trial integration.