Blocking a protein-making switch (eIF4E) to treat advanced prostate cancer
Project 3 - Deciphering the Role of the Translational Oncogenic Program in Prostate Cance
This project looks at whether adding the drug tomivosertib to enzalutamide helps men whose metastatic prostate cancer no longer responds to hormone therapy.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Francisco NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Francisco, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11181262 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
The team is focusing on eIF4E, a protein that controls how cancer cells make other proteins and may drive treatment-resistant prostate cancer. Researchers will use laboratory models and tumor samples to map how eIF4E changes the cancer’s protein makeup. They plan a clinical trial giving tomivosertib (an eIF4E-pathway inhibitor) together with enzalutamide to men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer to see if tumors shrink or stop growing. Participants may provide biopsies and blood samples so scientists can measure molecular changes and look for markers that predict response.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who have progressing disease despite standard androgen-targeting therapy.
Not a fit: Patients with early-stage prostate cancer, those who cannot tolerate enzalutamide or tomivosertib, or those with unrelated serious medical conditions are unlikely to benefit from this trial.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could shrink tumors or delay progression in men with castration-resistant prostate cancer and offer a new treatment option when androgen-targeting drugs stop working.
How similar studies have performed: Early laboratory data and some early-phase trials targeting the eIF4E pathway show promising biological effects, but clinical benefit in prostate cancer has not yet been established.
Where this research is happening
San Francisco, United States
- University of California, San Francisco — San Francisco, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ruggero, Davide — University of California, San Francisco
- Study coordinator: Ruggero, Davide
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 below.