Moffitt Cancer Center Recovery Act Grants

November 19, 2009

$498,000, to Claudio Anasetti, M.D., to evaluate the effectiveness of a new compound to control life-threatening complications associated with bone marrow transplants.
$109,616, to Scott Antonia, M.D., Ph.D., to develop and manufacture vaccines custom-designed to the genetic makeup of individual lung cancer patients to trigger immune responses that attack the tumor and/or increase the efficacy of other treatment agents being used.
$256,642 to Gerold Bepler, M.D., Ph.D., to support a Specialized Center of Research Excellence in lung cancer at Moffitt which currently includes five major clinical research studies aimed at improving survival rates for lung cancer patients through the development of genetically-based treatment and detection methods.
$2,087,500, to Srikumar Chellappan, Ph.D., to examine the role of the human gene ID1 in the progression of non-small-cell lung cancer.
$686,377, to P.K. Epling-Burnette, Ph.D. and Javier Pinilla, M.D., Ph.D., to understand the molecular mechanism of a compound which has shown to be successful in promoting lifesaving responses in certain blood-related cancers (myelodysplastic syndromes) and determine if this therapy can be adapted to create immuno-therapies for other types of cancer.
$214,764, to Julie Djeu, Ph.D., to train post-doctoral students for careers in immunological research, with a focus on the translation of scientific discoveries into new treatments to help patients fight cancer.
$833,260, to Kathleen Egan, Ph.D., for an ongoing study to explain the excessive occurrence of lethal “glioma” brain tumors in the Southeastern United States. Cancer cases and healthy volunteers from five sites in the Southeastern United States are being studied to shed light on the possible link to diet, genes, and other risk factors.
$459,000, to David Evans, Ph.D., to examine the role that specific genes play in attention deficits resulting from nicotine withdrawal. This research will inform the development of genetically personalized tobacco cessation programs.
$346,525, to Leigh Anne Faul, Ph.D., to evaluate survivorship care planning in colorectal cancer.
$2,005,467, to David Fenstermacher, Ph.D., to establish a health information system that synthesizes the data collected in Moffitt’s nationwide genetic profiling program with information collected through various other public health systems. This platform will be an invaluable, one-of-a-kind resource for comparing patient outcomes to develop personalized medicine.
$508,515, to Dmitry Gabrilovich, M.D., Ph.D., to find out why many promising new immunological treatments fail to deliver tangible benefits to most patients. Tumor microenvironment may prevent tumor cells from being recognized by immune cells. Gabrilovich will study the mechanism of this process and test different therapeutic approaches to correct the situation.
$1,809,000, to Robert Gatenby, M.D., to use advanced imaging methods and mathematical models to establish the role of the physical microenvironment in tumor development and growth and examine perturbations in critical parameters that can prevent tumor formation and reduce, halt, or even reverse progression of established cancers.
$225,089, to Clement Gwede, Ph.D., to develop a decision aid (educational DVD) to help men with a positive family history of prostate cancer make informed decisions about testing, with the ultimate goal of reducing the burden of prostate cancer.
$404,030, to John Koomen, Ph.D., to use mass spectrometry, similar to the methods used for drug testing in athletes, to detect and assess multiple myeloma using blood and urine collected from patients.
$663,994, to Cathy Meade, Ph.D., for supplemental funding to assist the Tampa Bay Community Cancer Network. TBCCN’s goal is to address critical access, prevention and control issues that impact medically underserved, low-literacy and low-income populations in selected areas of Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties.
$65,068 to Alan Nyitray, Ph.D., to determine the prevalence and risk factors for human papillomavirus (HPV) in heterosexual men. Because HPV is the primary cause of anal cancer, this information will help formulate effective prevention strategies.
$613,411, to W.J. Pledger, Ph.D., for a joint project with the Ponce School of Medicine in Puerto Rico to discover key molecules which can be targeted for new treatments and prevention methods for colorectal cancer.
$334,000, to Thomas Sellers, Ph.D., to explore how inherited genetic variations might influence risk of epithelial ovarian cancer.
$684,700, to Edward Seto, Ph.D., to investigate the interaction of a type of enzymes called histone deacetylases with certain proteins in the development and progression of cancer.
$1,206,947, to Daniel Sullivan, M.D.,Scott Antonia, M.D. Ph.D. and Hatem Soliman, M.D., to perform a phase I/II trial of 1-methyl-D-tryptophan combined with a p53 dendritic cell vaccine in breast cancer. The center’s cyclotron will also be used to generate ¹¹C-alpha methyl tryptophan for novel imaging during the phase II part of the trial.
$783,190, to Javier F. Torres-Roca, M.D., to validate a model that uses genetic characteristics to predict response to radiation therapy.