Targeting INSM1 in high-grade neuroendocrine cancers
Project 3 - INSM1, A Candidate Therapeutic Target in High-Grade Neuroendocrine Carcinomas
Using drugs that act on the INSM1 protein to try to stop or slow aggressive neuroendocrine cancers like small cell lung cancer, Merkel cell carcinoma, and neuroendocrine prostate cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | P01 program project |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Dana-Farber Cancer Inst NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11308238 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You will hear about research focused on INSM1, a protein commonly found across several aggressive neuroendocrine cancers. Scientists will use patient tumor samples, lab-grown cancer cells, and animal models to see how blocking INSM1 affects cancer cell survival and neuroendocrine behavior. They will use genetic tools and drugs called immunomodulatory imide drugs (iMiDs) to try to degrade or inhibit INSM1. If the lab work shows promise, the team aims to move toward drug development and future patient trials.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Patients with small cell lung cancer, Merkel cell carcinoma, or neuroendocrine prostate cancer — especially those whose tumors express INSM1 — would be the likely candidates for related future trials.
Not a fit: People with non-neuroendocrine cancers or tumors that do not express INSM1 are unlikely to benefit from this approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new targeted treatments for aggressive neuroendocrine cancers that currently have no approved targeted therapies.
How similar studies have performed: Drugs that degrade related zinc-finger proteins (for example lenalidomide targeting IKZF proteins) have worked in other cancers, but applying this strategy to INSM1 in neuroendocrine cancers is a new and largely untested idea.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Dana-Farber Cancer Inst — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Decaprio, James a. — Dana-Farber Cancer Inst
- Study coordinator: Decaprio, James a.
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.