Prof. Forconi is an expert in lymphoproliferative disorders and real-life cancer population studies. He works with the Southampton team to deliver and implement single immune and tumour cell technologies and bioinformatics/data managing platforms, and to investigate signalling pathways involved in tumour survival and growth from the early diagnostic stages, by conventional in vitro molecular approaches and by single-cell-based analyses.

Professor Forconi is a clinical haemato-oncologist and cancer immunologist. His group investigates the pathogenesis of mature B-cell lymphomas and chronic lymphocytic leukaemias, with focus on the structure and the function of the tumour B-cell receptor, to refine their prognosis and therapy.

Professor Forconi is the clinical scientific lead of the Academic B-cell Group at the School of Cancer Sciences, where he interacts with world-class PIs and scientists investigating microenvironmental interactions, cell signalling, (epi)genetics, and novel therapies of B-cell tumours. His Haematological Oncology Research Group focuses on the behaviour of mature B-cell neoplasms by analysis of the structure and function of the tumour B-cell receptor (BCR) in the most common leukaemia (Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia – CLL) and lymphomas (Follicular lymphoma and Diffuse large B-cell lymphomas). He is currently the author of >140 publications (>9700 citations, >1000 impact factor, h-index 49, i10-index 124) and leads several collaborative scientific projects nationally and internationally in Lymphoma and CLL, including the recent CRUK ECRIN-M3 accelerator programme on monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis with international partners (2020-2025).

His clinical activity is primarily dedicated to the care of patients with lymphomas and CLL. In Southampton, he leads the lymphoid clinic service and is a UK chief investigator and/or a principal investigator in several phase I/II/III clinical trials using novel therapeutic agents against lymphomas/leukaemia.

Professor Forconi has been a member of the UK NCRI Haematological Oncology Clinical Studies Group and regularly engages actively with the UK NCRI CLL Subgroup. He has served the UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) for several technology appraisals for novel agents in the clinical practice. He is an active core member of the Hairy Cell leukaemia Foundation, USA and leads Southampton as a “Center of Excellence” for Hairy Cell Leukaemia. He is Editorial Board Member for Blood and regularly contributes as a reviewer for the major journals of clinical and scientific immunology, oncology and haematology, has chaired sessions at major international conferences including the American Society of Haematology (ASH) annual meetings, and has provided educational contributions at major haemato-oncology meetings including UK CLL forum, EHA, ASH, and ECCO/ESMO.