Dana-Farber Cancer Institute shared a post on LinkedIn:
“A $12 million federal grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will fuel the next phase of breast cancer research at Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC), reaffirming the consortium’s national leadership through its renewed Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE).
“This represents an extraordinary vote of confidence from The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the talent and vision of our breast cancer research community,” says Kornelia Polyak, MD, PhD, co-leader of the DF/HCC Cell Biology Program and SPORE co-principal investigator. “By fostering close collaboration among basic, translational, and clinical investigators, and by partnering with our patients, we are positioned to make real and lasting impact.”
The SPORE’s initiative is to accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into clinical advances by supporting collaborative, multidisciplinary research focused on a specific cancer type, a group of related cancers, or a common pathway or specific theme.
Leading the research effort are Polyak; Nancy Lin associate chief of Breast Oncology; and Geoffrey Shapiro senior vice president of Developmental Therapeutics, together with Leif Ellisen program director of Breast Medical Oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital. The renewed grant will support four integrated translational research projects:
- Address mechanisms of resistance to antibody-drug conjugates
- Examine approaches to treating and preventing breast cancer brain metastases across breast cancer subtypes
- Build on prior preclinical work demonstrating that BET bromodomain inhibition is synergistic with chemoimmunotherapy in triple-negative breast cancer, promoting enhanced immunomodulation and efficacy
- Explore combined targeting of DNA repair and macrophage-mediated immunosuppression in BRCA-associated breast cancer.
The funds will also provide seed funding for pilot experiments that address innovative questions in breast cancer in DF/HCC’s Developmental Research Program and the Career Enhancement Program.
“The SPORE grant renewal will catalyze innovation and collaboration across DF/HCC and beyond,” says Shapiro. “We are grateful for this opportunity to advance discoveries that will directly improve the lives of patients.”
Since its launch, SPORE investigators have advanced new therapeutic strategies into clinical trials, uncovered key mechanisms of drug resistance, and developed innovative approaches to immunotherapy and precision medicine. The program has fostered collaborations across disciplines and institutions, trained the next generation of breast cancer researchers, and embraced its Patient Advocate Panel – a distinctive program feature to ensure the research reflects patient priorities.
These efforts have already shaped national clinical practice and are laying the groundwork for future breakthroughs that will improve the lives of patients with breast cancer.”
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