How radiation changes colorectal tumors and their surroundings
Analysis of the Irradiated Tumor and Tumor Microenvironment
This project looks at how pre-surgery radiation changes colorectal tumors, nearby normal and immune cells, and the tumor's microbes in people with resectable colorectal cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11189682 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you would get radiation before planned surgery and researchers would collect tumor tissue and nearby normal tissue at the time of surgery. They will run molecular and immune tests plus sequencing to see how radiation alters cancer cells, immune cells, and the tumor microbiome. The team will link those changes to patterns of cell death, senescence, and genomic instability to understand why some tumors respond better than others. Results aim to map how the tumor and its environment interact over time after radiation.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with resectable colorectal cancer who are scheduled for pre-operative radiation and are willing to provide tumor and nearby tissue samples would be ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Patients with non-colorectal cancers, unresectable or widely metastatic disease, or those unwilling to provide tissue samples would likely not benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help personalize pre-operative radiation or identify markers and strategies to improve treatment responses for people with colorectal cancer.
How similar studies have performed: Prior studies show radiation can change tumor cells and immune activity, but combining detailed molecular, immune, and microbiome profiling before and after pre-operative radiation is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Montagna, Cristina — Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ
- Study coordinator: Montagna, Cristina
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.