Understanding and preventing skin cancers in people who received organ transplants
Official title: The role of immunosuppression and environmental exposures on incident and subsequent keratinocyte carcinoma risk after solid organ transplant
Funded at University of Pennsylvania · NIH-11324610 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project studies why skin cancers are more common and more aggressive in kidney, liver, or other organ transplant recipients and how to better screen and manage them.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pennsylvania NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project start | May 1, 2025 |
| Project end | April 30, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $525,984 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA292523-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11324610 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adult solid organ transplant recipients who are at risk for keratinocyte carcinomas and who can be followed for skin cancer outcomes.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without organ transplants or without skin cancer risk may not directly benefit from this study.
What this research studies
If you’ve had an organ transplant and take medications that suppress your immune system, you may have a higher risk of skin cancers called keratinocyte carcinomas. The study aims to identify factors, including sun exposure and immune status, that influence this risk and to develop better tools for predicting who is most at risk. Researchers will use data from transplant patients to improve risk scores and guide personalized skin cancer surveillance and prevention strategies. The work could lead to earlier detection and fewer cancer-related complications for transplant recipients.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the project could lead to personalized skin cancer screening and prevention plans for transplant patients, reducing new and recurrent cancers and improving quality of life.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research shows a higher KC risk in immunosuppressed individuals, but there is a need for individualized risk models in transplant recipients.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kaplan, David E — University of Pennsylvania
- Study coordinator: Kaplan, David E
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
How immunosuppression and environmental factors affect skin cancer risk in organ transplant patients
This study is looking at why people who have had organ transplants are more likely to get certain skin cancers, like basal cell and squamous cell cancers, and it aims to find ways to better screen and manage these risks for those patients.
-
Biomarker-guided reduction of immunosuppression after liver transplant
A multicenter trial tests whether using blood biomarkers to guide tapering of immunosuppression in adults with liver transplants can keep people healthy while lowering drug exposure.
-
Personalized immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients using real-world data and AI
A kidney transplant grant aims to tailor immunosuppressive therapy to individual patients using real-world health data and artificial intelligence.
-
Biomarkers to tailor liver transplant immunosuppression
A multi-center study using blood biomarkers to guide how immunosuppressive drugs are given to liver transplant patients.
-
Using blood biomarkers to guide immunosuppression after liver transplant
This project uses regular blood biomarker checks to help doctors personalize immunosuppression for people who have had a liver transplant to reduce rejection and protect the kidneys.
-
Optimizing Immunosuppression and EBV-Seronegative Kidney Allocation to Reduce PTLD Risk
This grant explores how adjusting immunosuppression and kidney donor matching by EBV status could lower the risk of EBV-related cancers in kidney transplant patients.
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.