Brian Olson

Brian Olson
About Brian Olson

The androgen receptor (AR) is the engine driving prostate cancer and is the treatment target for metastatic disease. Resistance mechanisms to AR-targeting drugs commonly develop and lead to untreatable disease states, which can be accompanied by enhanced expression of AR.

T cells are an immune cell type with potent tumor-killing capabilities. Therapies to promote the ability of T cells to recognize and kill various tumors types are promising.

Dr. Brian Olson has found that T cells that recognize AR arise in prostate cancer patients and vaccination against AR induces potent anti-tumor T cell responses in mice.

In this project, the utility of combinations of AR-targeted drugs and vaccination against AR will be evaluated in pre-clinical models and first-in-human clinical trials. Methodologies will be developed to predict patients that will benefit from this combinatorial therapy.

If successful, this project will lead to a novel combination therapy to avoid lethal drug-resistance.

What this means for patients: Development of therapies that overcome resistance to AR-targeted medicines is critical for finding a cure to this lethal disease. This project will develop a unique therapeutic regimen that takes advantage of AR-targeted drug resistance mechanisms and the power of the immune system for treatment of patients with advanced disease.

Award

2014 Stephen A. Schwarzman-PCF Young Investigator

Brian Olson, PhD

University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center

Mentors

Douglas McNeel, MD, PhD, Glenn Liu, MD

Proposal Title

Targeting Resistance to Androgen Deprivation Therapies using Immunotherapies Targeting the Androgen Receptor