Predicting and overcoming resistance to cancer immunotherapy
Strategies to predict and overcome resistance to cancer immunotherapy
Finding why many cancers stop responding to immunotherapy and developing ways to restore lasting treatment benefit for people with cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11286796 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project looks at how certain immune T cells (especially self-renewing progenitor CD8+ T cells) keep anti-cancer responses working and why that system fails in patients whose tumors stop responding to PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors. The team combines laboratory studies of T cell signaling and cell biology with analysis of patient blood and tissue samples and translational experiments. They will use biomarkers and functional assays to try to identify patients at risk for losing benefit and to test strategies that could revive durable T cell immunity. The work is intended to translate basic discoveries into approaches that could be used in people receiving immunotherapy.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates would be people with solid tumors being treated with or who have progressed after PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor therapy who can provide blood or tissue samples.
Not a fit: Patients with cancers that do not depend on T-cell–mediated immunity or who cannot travel to the study site are unlikely to directly benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help predict who will not benefit from current immunotherapies and point to new methods to restore long-lasting anti-tumor immunity.
How similar studies have performed: Checkpoint blockade has produced durable remissions for some patients, but strategies to predict and reverse resistance remain largely experimental and the focus on progenitor T cells is a newer approach.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Columbia University Health Sciences — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Reiner, Steven L — Columbia University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Reiner, Steven L
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.