Reprogramming cancer signaling to help treat colorectal cancer
Official title: Reprogramming Epithelial WIRing to Eradicate CANcer (REWIRE-CAN)
Funded at Broad Institute, INC. · NIH-11506752 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Aims to use targeted signals to push colorectal cancer cells toward a state that makes them easier to kill, with potential benefits for patients who have this disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Broad Institute, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Cambridge, United States) |
| Project start | May 1, 2026 |
| Project end | April 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,272,236 |
| NIH project number | 1OT2CA320181-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11506752 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Patients with colorectal cancer who may benefit from new signaling-based therapies and future trials.
✕Less likely to help
Some tumors may not respond to reprogramming strategies or may experience adverse effects from pathway activation.
What this research studies
This project focuses on colorectal cancer and explores how turning up certain cellular signals can make cancer cells more vulnerable to treatment. It combines ideas about hyperactivation of key pathways and changing cancer cell states to improve responses to current and future therapies. Researchers will test signaling activators and strategies to rewrite cancer cell behavior in preclinical models, with an eye toward clinically usable approaches. The work builds on prior discoveries in CRC biology and drug development to move toward patient-facing options.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the approach could lead to new therapies that sensitize colorectal cancer cells to treatment and improve outcomes for patients.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work has shown that manipulating signaling pathways can alter cancer cell behavior, with early indications of potential benefit in CRC models.
Where this research is happening
-
Broad Institute, INC.
Cambridge, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sellers, William R — Broad Institute, INC.
- Study coordinator: Sellers, William R
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.