2007 Competitive Awards

Nanotechnology-based Solutions

Nanotechnology is the field of research and development that involves materials that are below 100nm—the size of molecules and atoms. At this scale, materials exhibit different characteristics and properties, making the use of nanoparticles an area that holds great promise for the detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Thi project is exploring if nanoscale particles can act as Trojan Horses in the body, delivering medication directly to cancer cells while bypassing healthy cells. Just recently, team members received a special $650,000 Amplification Award from the PCF for early milestone completion in the Koch-PCF Nanotherapeutics Challenge Award.

The multi-disciplinary team of laboratory and clinical scientists working on this nano-based program includes: Dr. Robert Langer, MIT; Dr. Philip Kantoff, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Dr. Omid Farokhzad, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Dr. Neil Bander, Weill Medical College/Cornell University.

Co-Targeted Drug Therapies

Although few agents have been approved or are currently in clinical trials for the prevention and treatment of bone metastases in men with prostate cancer, there is still a great need for improvement in treatment strategies. One approach is to combine drugs with different mechanism of action to identify greater benefit. However, the possible choices are too numerous to be effectively performed in the clinic. A means of prioritizing possible drug combinations based on rigorous pre-clinical evaluation is needed. This two-year program conducted at for research centers will focus on evaluating combinations of drugs that are already available for clinical trials in animal models of prostate cancer bone disease.

The team of primary investigators for this PCF-funded project includes: Dr. Theresa Guise, University of Virginia; Dr. Chris Logothetis, MD Anderson Cancer Center; Dr. Kenneth Pienta, University of Michigan; and Dr. Bob Vesella, University of Wasington.

Turning the Heat Up On Prostate Cancer

During the past two decades, advanced and devastating metastatic cancers have been cured in some types of cancer, such as testicular, by systematic treatment with cytotoxic drugs or radiation therapy. In spite of these successes, no molecular targets have yet been identified to explain these therapeutic successes. This program will focus on testicular cancer because, even with very extensive and advanced metastasis to the brain and lungs, the vast majority of these patients are now successfully treated with systemic therapy with cytotoxic drugs and are restored to long-term normal health.

An extensive analysis of world literature indicates strong evidence that metatastic testicular tumor cells are subjected to abnormal thermal stress when subjected to normal body temperatures and exhibit enhanced sensitivity. The result is an enhanced response to therapy by cytotoxic drugs, radiotherapy and immunotherapy. The team will explore the possibility of directing heat only to cancer cells utilizing tumor-selected nanoparticles that can be heat controlled by coupling to noninvasive external energy sources such as magnetic fields.

This project is designed to be a highly interactive program with expertise from five institutions including MIT, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the University of Michigan, Prostate Cancer Center – Vancouver and Johns Hopkins. The Integrative Operational Coordinators are Robert H. Getzenberg, PhD and Theodore L. DeWeese, M.D. of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.