AHR's effect on immunotherapy response and side effects in bladder cancer
Official title: The role of AHR in modulatingimmunotherapy response and adverse events in bladder cancer
Funded at Van Andel Research Institute · NIH-11329017 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will look at whether AHR pathway activity in bladder tumors affects how people respond to immune checkpoint treatments and whether it triggers dangerous rapid tumor growth.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Van Andel Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Grand Rapids, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2024 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $249,000 |
| NIH project number | 4R00CA286742-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11329017 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people with bladder cancer whose tumor tissue can be tested, especially those being considered for immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy or whose tumors show AHR/CYP1A1 activity.
✕Less likely to help
People without bladder cancer or whose tumors clearly lack AHR/CYP1A1 activation are unlikely to gain direct benefit from this specific research.
What this research studies
If you have bladder cancer, this research will examine tumor samples to see where the AHR pathway and its target gene CYP1A1 are active and how that relates to responses and side effects after immunotherapy. Researchers will use spatial profiling (NanoString GeoMX) to map RNA and protein in CYP1A1-positive tumors and study metabolic changes linked to fatty acid and xenobiotic processing. The team will test whether AHR activation before treatment makes tumors or the tumor environment more prone to rapid growth after immune checkpoint drugs. Findings come from analysis of human tumor tissue and laboratory work to understand cellular signaling behind these effects.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help predict who will benefit from immune checkpoint drugs and reduce the risk of dangerous rapid tumor growth in bladder cancer patients.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have linked AHR activation and CYP1A1 with immune-related tumor behavior, but connecting AHR to immunotherapy-triggered hyperprogression is a newer and not yet proven idea.
Where this research is happening
-
Van Andel Research Institute
Grand Rapids, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Jang, Hyo Sik — Van Andel Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Jang, Hyo Sik
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Population modeling to reduce bladder cancer burden
Aimed at predicting and guiding effective, population-based ways to prevent and control bladder cancer.
-
Blocking a new immune checkpoint in bladder cancer
Researchers are trying medicines that block a newly found immune pathway to help people with bladder cancer, especially those whose tumors do not respond to current immunotherapy.
-
Nrf2 in T cells and how it could boost immune power against bladder cancer
A small grant will explore how a T-cell protein called Nrf2 affects muscle-invasive bladder cancer and whether targeting it could help patients respond better to immune therapies.
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Understanding why bladder cancer spreads and resists treatment
This grant studies how advanced bladder cancer changes and spreads across the body, aiming to uncover why it’s hard to treat.
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Molecular clues to bladder cancer cell changes and therapy response
This NIH grant looks at how bladder cancer cells change their identity and how that affects response to treatment, with a focus on aggressive neuroendocrine variants.
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Repurposing spironolactone to treat bladder cancer inside the bladder
Aims to repurpose spironolactone as an intravesical treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer to help prevent recurrence and progression.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.