Finding and targeting tiny leftover colon cancer cells after surgery
Official title: Modeling Minimal Residual Disease in Colorectal Cancer
Funded at Duke University · NIH-11278760 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will collect hidden cancer cells from patients after colon cancer surgery, grow them in the lab, and test drugs to try to stop the cancer from coming back.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Duke University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Durham, United States) |
| Project start | April 24, 2026 |
| Project end | March 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $415,257 |
| NIH project number | 1R21CA307993-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11278760 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people having curative surgery for primary colorectal cancer who agree to an extra blood collection from the portal vein during the operation.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with widespread metastatic disease, those not undergoing surgical resection, or whose cancer cells cannot be grown in the lab are unlikely to benefit directly from this work.
What this research studies
If you take part, doctors will collect blood from the vein that drains the colon (the portal vein) during your surgery to look for hidden cancer cells. The team will use a new droplet-based method to grow those cells into tiny lab-grown spheres that mimic leftover disease. They will then see which standard treatments the cells resist and run large drug screens on resistant cells to find medications that might prevent recurrence. All work will be done in the lab at Duke using samples collected during surgery.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could identify treatments that kill leftover cancer cells and lower the chance that colorectal cancer returns after surgery.
How similar studies have gone: Related organoid and circulating tumor cell work has shown promise in labs, but using droplet-based MicroOrganoSpheres to model minimal residual disease is a relatively new and experimental approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Duke University
Durham, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hsu, Shiaowen David — Duke University
- Study coordinator: Hsu, Shiaowen David
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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.