Grant Archive - Page 2 of 136

Diana Hargreaves, PhD

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a leading cause of cancer death in America. PC has few treatment options. Immunotherapy is a treatment that has promise. Immunotherapy can cure cancer, but it has never worked for PC. We found that some PCs respond well to immunotherapy. These patients have a mutation in a SWI/SNF gene. We began a trial to test how SWI/SNF mutant PCs respond to immunotherapy. We will collect blood to see what changes with treatment. We will make mice with SWI/SNF mutant cancer and test if these mice respond to immunotherapy. We will also test if blocking SWI/SNF with a drug can make tumors respond to immunotherapy. We hope to identify PC patients that can benefit from immunotherapy. We will also identify new treatments for PC that may help other patients.

Kyle Payne, PhD

Ovarian cancer is one of the deadliest types of cancer and has very few treatment options. However, there is hope that new types of treatment that help the body’s own immune system fight cancer could help patients live longer. Scientists have found that ovarian cancer patients who have more T cells—special immune cells that can find and kill cancer—often survive longer than patients with fewer T cells. But we still don’t fully understand what T cells are targeting when they attack ovarian cancer cells. This lack of knowledge has slowed down the development of better immune-based treatments for this disease. Our study is trying to solve this problem. Using new technology, we plan to discover what T cells are looking for when they fight ovarian cancer. We also want to create a new treatment that helps T cells better find and kill cancer cells. To do this, we will use a method called mass spectrometry to find targets on the tumor cells. Then we will use computer tools and lab tests in animal models to see if T cells can recognize and respond to those targets. If this approach works, we will move forward with a clinical trial to test if the new treatment helps ovarian cancer patients live longer. We also believe this work could lead to new treatments for other types of cancer.

Lewis Chodosh, MD, PhD

Breast cancer comes back in up to 30% of patients, sometimes many years after treatment. These recurrences cause nearly all deaths from the disease. The returning cancer comes from tiny “sleeper” cells that survive treatment. These cells stay in the body without growing, in a resting or dormant state.

If we can keep these cells from “waking up,” we may be able to stop breast cancer from coming back and save lives. In our earlier research using mouse models and patient samples, we found something surprising: breast cancer sleeper cells can change their behavior and start acting like bone-forming cells. This change may help keep them dormant and stop the cancer from returning. We also showed that this bone forming activity can be seen in animals using PET scans—a common imaging method used in hospitals.

Our project aims to build on this discovery and develop a new way to keep sleeper cells dormant. To do this, we will:

Study this bone-forming process in patient tumor samples under the microscope.
Improve how we detect the bone forming process using PET scans in animal models.
Use what we learn to design a clinical trial that looks for whether this process occurs in patients during treatment.

If successful, our work could reveal a new way the body keeps cancer cells asleep, help us find which patients are affected, and lead to new treatments to prevent breast cancer from returning.

Jessica Sun, MD

Funded in partnership with the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation through the 2024 Dribble for Victory

Clinical trials help improve the treatment of children with cancer. But, it takes a lot of work to be able to offer clinical trials to patients. This grant will help us add another person our research team part-time. This person will gather information about clinical trials and share it with patients, families, and other providers so that people know what we have available at Duke. They will work with other doctors at Duke who treat children and young adults with cancer to make sure we are all offering clinical trials to our patients. They will also follow up with survivors of pediatric cancer to let them know of any available research options. By doing these things, we hope to be able to offer clinical trials to more patients.

Andrea Kasinski, PhD

We are developing a new cancer treatment that could change how we fight the disease. Our drug, FM-FolamiR-34a, is designed to treat triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). TNBC is one of the most aggressive and hardest-to-treat types of cancer. Many cancer treatments attack a single target, but our drug works differently. It stops multiple targets at once, like a combination of drugs in a single treatment. It does this by replacing a natural tumor-fighting molecule that is missing in many TNBC cases.Earlier attempts to use this type of treatment failed because the drug broke down too quickly and did not reach tumors well. We have solved this problem by making the drug more stable and attaching it to a targeting molecule that guides it directly to cancer cells.In lab studies, this approach shrank tumors and, in some cases, made them disappear completely. To prepare for human trials, we will improve the drug, compare it to existing treatments, and complete important safety tests.This research could lead to a powerful new way to treat cancer, offering hope to patients who currently have few options. Our goal is to turn cutting-edge science into real treatments that save lives.

Mario Suva, MD, PhD

Glioblastoma is the most common and aggressive type of brain cancer, and sadly, most people only survive 12 to 18 months after being diagnosed. This hasn’t changed in the last 20 years. One of the reasons it’s so hard to treat is that glioblastoma is very complex and different from one patient to another.To improve treatment, we need to better understand this complexity and figure out how to target each part of the cancer. The Suva lab has spent the last decade studying glioblastoma in depth using advanced genetic tools to understand how it varies. We’ve discovered that glioblastoma can be broken down into four important parts, and each part is essential for the cancer to grow.In this research, we will develop strategies to target each of these four parts. We’ll use new technologies developed by the Bar-Peled lab that can target elements of the cancer that were once thought too hard to treat. Our first step will be to analyze tumor samples from patients to find new drug targets. From there, we will work on drug development to eventually test them in clinical trials.

Kris Wood, PhD

Lung cancers are often discovered after they have spread throughout the body. When this happens, patients must be treated with drugs. These drugs often shrink tumors but do not cure patients. The tumor cells that survive these drug treatments are known as “residual” cells. Residual cells eventually grow back, causing death. For this reason, we are very interested in discovering drugs that can kill residual lung cancer cells. Recently we discovered that residual lung cancer cells cannot survive without an enzyme called PKN2. We have access to a drug that blocks PKN2. Further, we already know that this drug is safe for patients. We are applying for grant funds to do three things. First, we will determine which residual lung cancers are most sensitive to this drug. Second, we will determine how this drug kills residual lung cancers. Third, we will determine how well this drug prevents lung cancer from relapsing in mice. Together, these studies will advance our understanding of residual lung cancer. They will also advance a new drug therapy that can be quickly translated to clinical trials by our team of expert doctors and scientists.

Roger Lo, MD, PhD

After successful treatments, cancer patients often dread their disease returning months or years down the road. Even a few cancer cells hidden in the body can find ways to grow again. We will find ways to block these cancer cells from mutating so that they cannot find ways to grow again. These studies seek to provide new ways to extend survival and improve quality of life.

Jacalyn Rosenblatt, MD

Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer that affects plasma cells. This disease can lead to infections, kidney problems, and bone pain or fractures. There have been great improvements in the treatment of multiple myeloma in recent years. However, most people are still not cured by current therapy. Treatments that use the immune system have shown great promise. One important example is CAR T-cell therapy. CAR T cells are made by taking a patient’s T cells (a type of immune cell), and changing them so they can recognize and kill cancer cells. These cells are then given back into the patient by an intravenous infusion. CART cell therapy has resulted in dramatic improvements in outcomes for patients with multiple myeloma. Our group has studied a new combination approach to improve upon responses to CART cell therapy. We have developed a personalized cancer vaccines using a patient’s own cancer cells. To make the vaccine, a patients plasma cells are collected from the bone marrow and are combined with immune cells called dendritic cells, which help activate the immune system. In a national study, this vaccine was shown to be safe, could be made at centers across the country, and was shown to stimulate immune responses. In this new study will test the vaccine in combination with CAR T-cell therapy. This DC/MM fusion vaccine has the potential to stimulate a broad immune response, preventing the development of resistance and can expand the CART cells to enhance their durability and effect.

Stephanie Wheeler, PhD, MPH

Funded by the 2024 Victory Ride to Cure Cancer

The Southeastern American Indian Cancer Health Equity Partnership (SAICEP) is a team made up of three cancer centers in North Carolina. These centers are working together to help lower cancer rates in American Indian communities. This year, with help from the V Foundation, SAICEP is starting a new project for Native youth and young adults, ages 16 to 30. The goal is to lower the risk of cancer by focusing on three things: getting the HPV vaccine, staying safe in the sun, and stop the use of unsafe tobacco products. To do this, SAICEP will work with the North Carolina Native American Youth Organization (NCNAYO). They will choose and train Native youth to become health ambassadors. These ambassadors will share important health information in their communities. SAICEP will also go to Native events across the state to talk with people and hand out materials about cancer health. At the end of the project, they will ask the youth and others what they learned and how the project helped. This project will help more young Native people stay healthy and avoid cancer in the future. It also gives Native youth a chance to lead and help their own communities.