Dr. Lu embarked on his research career in tumor immunology during his PhD program, where he undertook a collaborative project with Drs. Yongjun Liu and Lixin Li from Seven & Eight Biopharma to develop innovative immunotherapies. The drug resulting from this collaboration has generated highly promising results in Phase I and II clinical trials conducted in France and the United States. Subsequently, the entire pipeline was acquired by Eikon Therapeutics, a U.S.-based biotechnology company funded by Roger M. Perlmutter, former Executive Vice President and R&D Head of Merck & Co.

       During his postdoctoral training, Dr. Lu led a groundbreaking study published as two back-to-back research articles in Cancer Cell. This work elucidated the mechanisms underlying responsiveness and resistance to anti-PD-1 therapy in dMMR tumors and uncovered the critical role of the tumor cell-intrinsic cGAS-STING pathway in regulating tumor-infiltrating T cells. The study garnered significant acclaim within the scientific community, including high praise from Professors Andrés Cervantes (President of ESMO) and Alberto Bardelli (President of EACR). It was also honored as one of the EACR Top 10 Cancer Research Publications of 2020.