From making radiation more effective at killing cancer cells to helping people with breast cancer get moving, last summer’s record-breaking Prouty fundraiser event raised more than $8 million for ground-breaking research. Here are four of these projects.
Shining a light on oxygen levels during radiation
Radiation therapy is a common cancer treatment, but it can harm healthy tissue. A newer type of radiation, called ultra-high dose rate radiation therapy (UHDR-RT), has been shown to cause less damage, but how it works is not yet fully understood.
One idea is that UHDR-RT quickly uses up oxygen in tissues. Since oxygen makes radiation more harmful, rapidly removing it could protect healthy tissue. However, current methods to measure oxygen inside the body are invasive and not very precise. In a new Prouty Pilot project, Lesley Jarvis, MD, Jack Hoopes PhD, DVM, and Arthur Petusseau, PhD, will use a non-invasive light-based method and a molecule that naturally occurs in the human body called “PpIX” to track oxygen levels during UHDR-RT and regular radiation treatment.
Backed by promising results from pre-clinical studies, the team will further study the short and long-term effects of UHDR-RT, looking at how oxygen levels relate to tissue damage and whether PpIX can make radiation more effective at killing cancer cells. This research aims to prepare for human trials, making radiation therapy safer and more effective for patients.
Spotlighting pre-cancer waiting in the wings
Head and neck cancers often return, even after surgery. This might be because of hidden, pre-cancerous areas of tissue called Tumor Precursor Fields, or TPFs, near the main tumor. These TPFs often have genetic changes, making them likely to become cancer. Currently, the only way to find them is through biopsies and genetic tests, which are invasive and limited.
Scientists think these TPFs might show abnormal levels of a protein called Keratin 13. In a new Prouty Pilot, Kimberley Samkoe, PhD, and Laura Tafe, MD, will collect residual tissue samples to test this idea. They'll stain the tissue to see where Keratin 13 is found and then use genetic tests to confirm if those areas are indeed TPFs.
“This research aims to find a better way to detect TPFs,” says Samkoe. “The long-term goal is to develop a tool that lets surgeons see and remove these pre-cancerous areas during surgery, reducing the chance of the cancer coming back.”
Getting SMART about exercise for breast cancer survivors
Exercise is the most important lifestyle behavior for reducing breast cancer risk and recurrence. In fact, experts want exercise counseling to become a standard part of cancer care by 2029. But while doctors and cancer support groups agree it's important, many breast cancer survivors don't exercise enough after diagnosis, especially in rural areas.
New research by Courtney J. Stevens, PhD, and co-investigator and breast oncologist Mary D. Chamberlin, MD, aims to help more breast cancer survivors stay active. Their goal is to create a personalized exercise counseling program that can be delivered remotely using telemedicine. The team will use a special type of study design called SMART (which stands for “sequential, multiple assignment, randomized trial”) to determine the best way to use limited resources, such as professional exercise counseling sessions, to help breast cancer survivors get and stay active. Their Prouty Pilot results will be used to apply for larger-scale national funding to further study and improve cancer survivor care.
A new target for cancer therapies?
A group of proteins that help control how genes work are often changed in cancer. One of these proteins, ARID1A, is frequently mutated, especially in colorectal cancer. While it is known that ARID1A is important in preventing cancer, exactly how it helps or what happens when it's broken, is not fully understood.
Cancer researchers Xiaofeng Wang, PhD, and Soroush Vosoughi, PhD, discovered that another related protein, ARID1B, is crucial for cancers with mutated ARID1A. This means ARID1B could be a target for new cancer treatments.
In a new Prouty Pilot, they want to figure out how ARID1A normally works to prevent colon cancer and understand why ARID1B is so important for cancers with mutated ARID1A. “We'll use advanced genetic techniques and computer analysis to see how ARID1A controls the way DNA is organized, followed by a method to quickly remove ARID1B and see what happens to the cancer cells,” says Wang. “By doing this, we hope to learn more about how ARID1A prevents cancer, find new targets for cancer drugs, and improve treatment for colon cancer and other cancers.”
Registration for the 44th annual Prouty is open with a goal of $10 million to support ground-breaking research projects such as these! Now is the perfect time to start a team, join a team or Prouty your own way in support of life-saving research at Dartmouth Cancer Center. Visit TheProuty.org to learn how you can get involved. Hope Starts Here.