Stopping early lung squamous changes before they become cancer
Official title: Modeling lung squamous cell carcinoma premalignancy and prevention
Funded at University of Colorado Denver · NIH-11310165 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are building better lab models that mirror early lung squamous changes to help find medicines that stop premalignant lesions from becoming cancer in people at risk.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Colorado Denver NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Aurora, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | April 1, 2025 |
| Project end | March 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $583,368 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA298925-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11310165 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people at high risk for lung squamous cell carcinoma, such as current or former heavy smokers with detected premalignant lesions or abnormal bronchoscopic findings.
✕Less likely to help
People without lung premalignant lesions or those who already have invasive lung cancer are unlikely to benefit from this prevention-focused work.
What this research studies
The team created a faster mouse model that combines a chemical agent with cigarette smoke to produce premalignant lung squamous lesions in three months. They will compare the mouse lesions to previously collected human lesion data to ensure the model matches human disease. Tissue from the mouse model will be incorporated into bioengineered precision-cut lung slices to screen and prioritize prevention drugs. The goal is to create a preclinical pipeline that points to the safest and most promising treatments for future human prevention trials.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could speed discovery of safe treatments that prevent early lung squamous lesions from progressing to invasive cancer.
How similar studies have gone: Past population-based prevention trials largely failed or caused harm, but recent early-stage prevention trials backed by stronger preclinical evidence have shown encouraging signs and this faster, human-relevant modeling approach is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Colorado Denver
Aurora, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Tennis, Meredith a — University of Colorado Denver
- Study coordinator: Tennis, Meredith a
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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.