Exosome markers to tell if kidney cancer immunotherapy is working
Official title: Exosome Signatures of Kidney Cancer Response to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor
Funded at Stanford University · NIH-11308288 · Data updated 2026-11-12
We will look for proteins and RNA in blood and urine exosomes to see if they can show early whether immunotherapy helps people with metastatic kidney cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Stanford University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Stanford, United States) |
| Project start | April 1, 2025 |
| Project end | March 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $179,988 |
| NIH project number | 5R21CA299766-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11308288 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people with metastatic renal cell carcinoma starting first-line combination immunotherapy with nivolumab plus ipilimumab who can give blood and urine samples and return for scheduled CT scans.
✕Less likely to help
People with early-stage kidney cancer, those not receiving this immunotherapy combination, or those unwilling/unable to provide blood or urine samples are unlikely to benefit from this project.
What this research studies
If you have metastatic kidney cancer and start nivolumab plus ipilimumab, the team will collect blood and urine samples before and after treatment and measure exosomal proteins (including KIM‑1 and PD‑L1) and microRNAs. Researchers will compare those molecular signals to routine CT scans done about 2–3 months after starting therapy to find changes that appear earlier. The goal is to find patterns in exosomes that show who is responding and who is not so ineffective therapy can be stopped sooner. Sample collection and imaging will follow standard clinic visits.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could let doctors identify responders sooner and stop ineffective immunotherapy earlier so patients can try other treatments.
How similar studies have gone: Biomarker work using blood-based proteins and exosomal RNAs has shown promise in other cancers but remains exploratory and not yet established for routine care in kidney cancer.
Where this research is happening
-
Stanford University
Stanford, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Fan, Alice Chen — Stanford University
- Study coordinator: Fan, Alice Chen
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Identifying early responses to kidney cancer treatment using exosomes
This study is looking at tiny particles called exosomes in blood and urine to see if they can help doctors tell how well patients with advanced kidney cancer are responding to a combination treatment, so patients can get the right care faster and avoid treatments that aren't working.
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Maximizing anti-tumor immune responses in kidney cancer
A cutting-edge program at UT Southwestern aims to speed up better immunotherapy options for kidney cancer by studying how to activate both innate and adaptive immune responses.
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Kidney Cancer Career Enhancement Program (CEP) at DF/HCC
A career-boosting program supports junior investigators studying kidney cancer to help them advance in basic, translational, and clinical work.
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Kidney Cancer Development Program at DF/HCC
A funded program at Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Kidney Cancer Center supports new ideas from researchers to improve understanding and treatment of kidney cancer.
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Personalized antigens for kidney cancer therapy
This grant explores identifying and targeting tumor-specific antigens in kidney cancer to develop more effective, personalized immunotherapies.
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Optimizing Anti-PD1 Therapy for High-Risk and Metastatic Kidney Cancer
A large cancer research grant is testing how best to use anti-PD-1 therapy to help people with high-risk and metastatic kidney cancer live longer and with fewer side effects.
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.