UT Southwestern Kidney Cancer Program
Official title: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center SPORE in Kidney Cancer
Funded at Ut Southwestern Medical Center · NIH-11145062 · Data updated 2026-11-12
New treatments and scans for people with advanced kidney cancer, including drugs that target HIF2α (even resistant tumors) and therapies that block the cancer's nutrient use.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ut Southwestern Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Dallas, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2016 |
| Project end | July 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $2,336,997 |
| NIH project number | 5P50CA196516-09 |
| Project ID | NIH-11145062 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people with advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma, especially those whose tumors rely on HIF2α or who have progressed after existing HIF2α-targeted therapy.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with early-stage kidney cancer already cured by surgery or tumors not driven by HIF2α are unlikely to benefit from these specific interventions.
What this research studies
You would be joining a program that develops new drugs and imaging to help people with kidney cancer. The team is advancing a second-generation siRNA therapy designed to block both normal and drug-resistant forms of HIF2α and is creating a radiotracer to image HIF2α activity in patients' tumors. Other projects trace nutrients like glutamine in patients to find metabolism-targeting therapies that starve cancer. The program includes clinical trials, biomarker studies, and builds on earlier work that led to the FDA-approved HIF2α drug belzutifan.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, these approaches could provide more effective treatment options for advanced or drug-resistant kidney cancer and better ways to see which tumors will respond.
How similar studies have gone: Related HIF2α-targeting drugs have already led to an FDA-approved therapy (belzutifan), while the siRNA drug and imaging tracer are newer and less tested in patients.
Where this research is happening
-
Ut Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Brugarolas, James — Ut Southwestern Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Brugarolas, James
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Maximizing anti-tumor immune responses in kidney cancer
A cutting-edge program at UT Southwestern aims to speed up better immunotherapy options for kidney cancer by studying how to activate both innate and adaptive immune responses.
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Kidney Cancer Career Enhancement Program (CEP) at DF/HCC
A career-boosting program supports junior investigators studying kidney cancer to help them advance in basic, translational, and clinical work.
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Kidney Cancer Development Program at DF/HCC
A funded program at Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Kidney Cancer Center supports new ideas from researchers to improve understanding and treatment of kidney cancer.
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Personalized antigens for kidney cancer therapy
This grant explores identifying and targeting tumor-specific antigens in kidney cancer to develop more effective, personalized immunotherapies.
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Optimizing Anti-PD1 Therapy for High-Risk and Metastatic Kidney Cancer
A large cancer research grant is testing how best to use anti-PD-1 therapy to help people with high-risk and metastatic kidney cancer live longer and with fewer side effects.
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Targeting the HIF2 Pathway in Kidney Cancer
A cancer treatment program aims to see if a drug called belzutifan can help people with a specific kind of kidney cancer whose growth is driven by the HIF2 pathway.
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.