Cancer Biology Research is Advancing Progress Towards National Cancer Plan Goals
Fundamental research and outreach activities supported by the NCI Division of Cancer Biology (DCB) are helping to achieve the goals of the National Cancer Plan, which provides a framework for everyone—across all of society—to work together in ending cancer as we know it.
Prevent Cancer
Some examples of DCB-funded research to reduce the risk of developing cancer:
- Found that barrier-to-autointegration factor 1 (BAF1) mediates the reactivation of cancer-causing gammaherpesviruses and may be a target for treating oncogenic viral infections.
- Identified a tumor-suppressive process in bladder cells (called transcriptional-translational conflict), which blocks cancer-causing genetic programs. This mechanism could possibly be leveraged for bladder cancer prevention strategies.
- Showed that oncogenic KRAS reprograms lipid metabolism to drive pancreatic tumorigenesis and may be a potential target to prevent pancreatic cancer development.
- Discovered that midkine and neuronal hyperexcitability are drivers of NF1-associated pediatric optic pathway glioma growth. Additionally, lamotrigine (anti-epileptic drug that inhibits neuronal midkine production) was found to prevent brain tumor growth in preclinical models.
Detect Cancers Early
Some examples of DCB funded research to enable the detection and treatment of cancers at earlier stages:
- Engineered bacteria that can detect DNA that has been released from tumors.
- Developed assays to detect ORF1p, a transposon protein that is a biomarker of multiple cancers. This could potentially be used as cost-effective tools in early cancer detection and monitoring.
- Identified a set of genes with elevated expression that acts as a biomarker during early pancreatic cancer development using genetically engineered pancreatic acinar cells.
- Identified exosome biomarkers for detecting early stages of cancer using machine learning.
Develop Effective Treatments
Some examples of DCB-funded research to develop effective cancer treatments with minimal side effects:
- Showed that experimentally targeting Malat1 (a long non-coding RNA) suppresses lung metastasis.
- Found that clofazimine (a medication used to treat leprosy) potentiates the efficacy while reducing the toxicity of preclinical combination immunotherapies.
- Developed a preclinical approach to return cancerous cells to an earlier, more normal state in pediatric rhabdoid tumors.
- Found that targeting YES1 enhances the efficacy of taxanes (i.e., chemotherapy drugs) in preclinical models of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
Eliminate Inequities
Some examples of DCB-funded research to reduce cancer disparities:
- Discovered that an enzyme expressed in B cells promotes acute lymphoid leukemia disparities in Latin American populations.
- Showed that the phosphorylation of survivin plays a role in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) disparities. Inhibition of polo-like kinase 1 and Aurora kinase B suppresses survivin phosphorylation and African American TNBC growth in experimental models.
- Revealed a distinct metabolic phenotype in African American bladder cancer, which may be a potential therapeutic target to address a cancer disparity.
- Found that African ancestry–associated gene expression profiles in TNBC underlie altered cancer biology and clinical outcome in patients of African descent.
Deliver Optimal Care
Some examples of DCB-supported research and initiatives to help improve the delivery of evidence-based, patient-centered care:
- ARPA-H's ADvanced Analysis for Precision cancer Therapy (ADAPT) Program builds on the impact of cancer systems biology research and complements existing efforts of the Cancer Systems Biology Consortium (CSBC) by developing, testing, and validating therapy response biomarkers within a linked clinical trial infrastructure. This new initiative to improve cancer care also incorporates ideas and discussions from the Translational Systems Biology Symposium.
- Investigators with the Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN) generated human tumor atlases that inform patient stratification, the design of prevention and early detection approaches, and the development of new treatments to improve cancer care.
- Investigators with the Oncology Models Forum (OMF) developed and validated new mammalian models for translational cancer research, which provide reliable and informative data for patient benefit.
- Fundamental research supported by DCB paved the way for the development of Vorasidenib, a new clinical treatment for IDH-mutant low-grade gliomas.
Engage Every Person
Some examples of DCB activities to engage every person with cancer or at risk for cancer in fundamental research:
- DCB Research Programs, including the Physical Sciences - Oncology Network (PS-ON) and Metastasis Research Network (MetNet), engage patient advocates in the basic cancer research continuum.
- Organizes public workshops related to understudied and emerging areas in cancer biology.
- Hosts open and public discussions on social media about advances, opportunities, and future directions for different areas of cancer biology.
- DCB staff help organize public webinars about cancer research, such as the Cancer Moonshot Seminar Series and Cancer AI Conversations to help share information about cancer biology discoveries and technologies with the community.
Maximize Data Utility
Some examples of DCB-supported research and activities to promote the sharing of cancer research data:
- Developed an interactive data visualization system, called psudo, that allows users to create optimal color palettes for multichannel spatial data. This tool enables the exploration of multiplexed biomedical imaging data to reveal mechanistic insights, including investigations of complex immune responses in cancer.
- Developed Spectra, an algorithm for the supervised discovery of interpretable gene programs from single cell data. This open-source software scales to large tumor atlases for determining molecular factors linked to clinical outcomes.
- Developed MuSiCal, a computational tool for mutational signature analysis, which can, ultimately, inform prognosis and treatment decisions for cancer patients.
- DCB staff created guidance for the NIH Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy to help fundamental cancer researchers plan for managing and collecting data.
Optimize the Workforce
Some examples of DCB activities to develop and maintain a robust, stable, and diverse cancer research workforce:
- Supports activities that help junior investigators (i.e., graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and early faculty) develop career skills and network with other scientists that contribute to their scientific career advancement. This includes hosting the annual NCI Junior Investigator Meeting and career development opportunities organized by DCB Research Programs.
- Since 2001, DCB has been hosting an annual New Grantee Workshop to help new grantees transition from early-stage and new investigators to established investigators.
- DCB supports NIH Research Enhancement Award (R15) investigators who are increasing the diversity of viewpoints in cancer research and training the next generation of scientists.
- DCB encourages collaborative interactions between members of different scientific communities through workshops and supplemental funding opportunities.