Improving PET/CT imaging for lung cancer immunotherapy
Official title: A Quantitative PET/CT Research Resource for Co-Clinical Imaging of Lung Cancer Therapies
Funded at University of Washington · NIH-11182720 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project builds better PET/CT imaging methods and a shared online resource to help immunotherapy for people with non-small cell lung cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Washington NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Seattle, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2021 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $636,517 |
| NIH project number | 5U24CA264044-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11182720 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with non-small cell lung cancer, especially those being considered for or receiving anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy and who can undergo PET/CT scans, are the most relevant candidates.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without NSCLC, those not eligible for PET/CT imaging, or those not receiving immunotherapy are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
This project develops more precise PET/CT imaging methods that link lab work in mice with clinical scans in people with non-small cell lung cancer. Researchers will refine imaging techniques in a genetically engineered mouse model treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors and compare those results to clinical PET scans. They will standardize imaging data and create a web-accessible resource using the industry-standard DICOM format so hospitals and scientists can share and compare images and analyses. The goal is to make imaging more reliable for tracking who responds to immunotherapy and to speed translation of promising markers into patient care.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help doctors use PET/CT scans to more accurately identify which NSCLC patients are responding to immune checkpoint inhibitors and guide treatment choices.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work has shown PET imaging can provide helpful biomarkers for immunotherapy response, but standardized quantitative co-clinical PET methods and a shared DICOM-based resource are relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Washington
Seattle, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kinahan, Paul E. — University of Washington
- Study coordinator: Kinahan, Paul E.
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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.