Bone cancer in pet dogs and how it mirrors human disease
Official title: Clinical, molecular, and immune characterization of naturally occurring osteosarcoma in dogs
Funded at University of California at Davis · NIH-11141121 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how naturally occurring bone cancer in pet dogs behaves—clinically, molecularly, and immunologically—to guide better trials and outcome measures for dogs and people.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California at Davis NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Davis, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $587,026 |
| NIH project number | 5U01CA281905-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11141121 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are client-owned dogs diagnosed with naturally occurring osteosarcoma who are undergoing surgical treatment and whose owners agree to sample collection and clinical follow-up.
✕Less likely to help
Dogs without osteosarcoma, dogs not having surgery, or owners unwilling to provide samples or follow-up are not likely to benefit from participating, and any direct benefit to human patients would be indirect and long-term.
What this research studies
If your dog is diagnosed with bone cancer (osteosarcoma), this work enrolls client-owned dogs treated with surgery and follows their outcomes over time. Researchers will collect tumor samples and blood to study tumor genetics, the tumor microenvironment, and immune responses. The team will combine clinical follow-up with deep molecular and immune profiling to define the range of natural disease outcomes. The findings will be used to design more predictive canine trials that can bridge to human cancer research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could improve how canine bone cancer trials are designed, identify biologic markers of outcome, and make dog models more useful for developing better human and veterinary treatments.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work has shown that canine osteosarcoma resembles the human disease biologically and clinically, but using the dog model to predict human trial outcomes is still relatively new and being refined.
Where this research is happening
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University of California at Davis
Davis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Rebhun, Robert B — University of California at Davis
- Study coordinator: Rebhun, Robert B
Related research
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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.