PET scans that show activated T cells during CAR T cancer therapy
Developing clinically relevant PET tracers to image T cell activation for improved cancer immunotherapy monitoring
Researchers are creating PET imaging drugs that light up activated T cells to help people receiving CAR T-cell cancer treatments see how the therapy is working.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Stanford University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Stanford, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11262845 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From your perspective, the team is designing antibody-based PET tracers that stick to proteins (like OX40 and ICOS) found on activated T cells, including CAR T cells. They will label these antibody fragments with PET radioisotopes and test them in laboratory and animal models that mimic human CAR T therapy. The imaging approach is meant to let doctors take non-invasive, repeated pictures over time to see where and when T cells become active or fail. If the tracers perform well, the plan is to move toward human imaging studies so doctors can better guide immunotherapy decisions.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates would be people receiving CAR T-cell or other T cell–based immunotherapies, especially for blood cancers and clinical trials of CAR T for solid tumors.
Not a fit: Patients not treated with T cell–based therapies or whose cancers do not involve T cell activation are unlikely to benefit from these specific imaging tracers.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, these tracers could let clinicians spot activated T cells earlier, tailor immunotherapy, and identify treatment failures or toxicities sooner.
How similar studies have performed: ImmunoPET approaches have shown promising preclinical results targeting immune cells, but there are currently no clinically approved PET tracers that specifically mark activated T cells.
Where this research is happening
Stanford, United States
- Stanford University — Stanford, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: James, Michelle Louise — Stanford University
- Study coordinator: James, Michelle Louise
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.