Cancer is a Formidable Enemy
It’s complex and ever changing, requiring us to develop new defenses. To fight this battle, we are mobilizing every resource available.
BECAUSE WE INTEND TO WIN.
$36.9m
RESEARCH FUNDING
382
PUBLISHED STUDIES
911
PATIENTS PARTICIPATED IN A CLINICAL TRIAL
196
ACTIVE RESEARCH GRANTS
$36.9m
IN RESEARCH FUNDING
382
PUBLISHED STUDIES
2023 By The Numbers
196
ACTIVE RESEARCH GRANTS
911
PATIENTS PARTICIPATED IN A CLINICAL TRIAL
Data Provided By: University of Cincinnati > UC Health > Cincinnati Childrens
DISCOVERING
BREAKING WITH TRADITION
Our researchers are shattering silos within and between institutions to accelerate pancreatic cancer breakthroughs.
Pancreatic cancer might not be the most common type of cancer in the Greater Cincinnati area, but it is the deadliest. We are working to change that grim statistic by connecting researchers and clinicians both inside and outside of the pancreatic cancer field. Our researchers and clinicians—supported by the most respected grant funders—have earned a national reputation for expertise in pancreatic cancer research and clinical care.
Pancreatic Cancer Research
We are the first midwestern site to participate in the Phase II mRNA pancreatic cancer vaccine trial. In the Phase I trial, 8 of 32 patients were completely cured, which is double the current survival rate. “This could be a game changer,” says Davendra Sohal, MD, MPH, associate director for clinical research.
Pancreatic Cancer Vaccine Trial
We are leading a national clinical trial to study the effectiveness of administering chemotherapy after pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor surgery in reducing or preventing recurrence. Co-director Syed Ahmad, MD, is the national principal investigator for the SWOG Cancer Research Network trial.
Novel Drugs Target KRAS Mutation
We have received an NCI grant to test novel drugs that target two KRAS mutations commonly found in pancreatic cancer. Researcher Andrew Waters, PhD, who received the 3-year career development grant, will lead this research as well as study the specific mechanisms within KRAS-mutated pancreatic cancer cells that lead to resistance to targeted treatments.
Novel Drugs Target KRAS Mutation
We are working to improve pancreatic cancer survivorship by developing drugs to block the growth and spread of cancer cells outside the pancreas. Vladimir Bogdanov, PhD, director of Hemostasis Research Program, has developed a humanized antibody drug, tested in animal models, that targets a molecule activating growth and spread of cancer cells.
Stopping Pancreatic Cancer Metastasis
Hover over each box to read highlights.
TOP 3 DEADLIEST CANCERS
In the 10 counties that account for 80% of patients at the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center, pancreatic cancer has the highest mortality rate out of the 10 most common types of cancer.*
Partnering with Eilean Therapeutics, the Leukemia Drug Discovery Laboratory, led by John C. Byrd, MD, senior advisor at the Cancer Center, identified a compound, lomonitinib, which is a highly potent and selective pan-FLT3/IRAK4 inhibitor that targets clinically relevant FLT3 mutations (ITD, TKD), the most common AML mutations. After undergoing rigorous preclinical testing, the drug moved into human studies in under two years—a process that normally takes more than five years.
Kurome Therapeutics, spun out of Cincinnati Children’s and based on discoveries in the Starczynowski Lab, recently received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance of an investigational new drug application for KME-0584, an IRAK1/4 and pan-FLT3 inhibitor for the treatment of AML and high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Phase I clinical trials will begin in 2024.
AML Clinical Trials
The University of Cincinnati Cancer Center’s new blood cancer centers ultimately mean cancer patients benefit from novel treatments sooner, as evidenced by two new drugs to treat AML that have recently been approved for clinical trials. The drugs are based on basic science research developed at the Cancer Center.
“These two molecules are distinct from one another and provide the Cancer Center two shots on goal to effectively treat multiple types of blood cancers,” says John C. Byrd, MD, chief medical officer of the national Beat AML Master Clinical Trial.
COLLABORATING
CENTER OF INNOVATION
We're putting researchers, physicians, and patients side-by-side to accelerate our work in blood cancer treatments.
The University of Cincinnati Cancer Center is building its nationally renowned blood cancer program—literally—to promote collaboration and accelerate research. The new Advanced Leukemia Therapies and Research Center (top-left) at Cincinnati Children’s and the Blood Cancer Healing Center (bottom-left) at the University of Cincinnati consolidate basic science research, clinical trials and patient care into one location. The goal of this major investment is to accelerate collaboration between researchers and clinicians at Cincinnati Children’s, UC Health, and the UC College of Medicine.
“These centers help us build on our foundation to recruit world-class researchers, foster collaboration across our institutions and invest in infrastructure so we can move more quickly from bench to bedside,” says Daniel Starczynowski, PhD, associate director for basic science research.
Hover over each center's image on the left to read additional highlights.
BLOOD CANCER HEALING CENTER
-
Located at University of Cincinnati
-
212,000 square-foot center
-
Designed and renovated specifically for patient care and research into blood cancers
-
30 inpatient beds
-
40+ clinical trials
ADVANCED LEUKEMIA THERAPIES & RESEARCH CENTER
-
Located at Cincinnati Children’s
-
1st in the Nation
-
Unites research and clinical operations in one location
-
Provides access to human biospecimens and real-time clinical trial feedback
MEET CANCER EXPERT
John C. Byrd, MD
Senior Advisor, Endowed Chair of Internal Medicine
Research advancements for many forms of blood cancer are giving new life to patients. You can now survive years past a blood cancer diagnosis, managing it as a chronic illness. The Blood Cancer Healing Center supports this new life for patients by bringing all the needed supportive services and pioneering research together to deliver personalized care in one therapeutic environment.
ENGINEERING
DESIGNER TARGETS
Our researchers are engineering bacteria that can infiltrate tumors and attract cancer killing radiation.
Like targeted chemotherapy, radionuclide therapy requires a genetic target in the cancer cell that radiation can recognize and bind to. If a patient’s cancer lacks that target—or mutates to get rid of it—these therapies won’t work. In these cases, engineering bacteria with these missing receptors can serve as surrogates.
E. coli Nissle is an especially good surrogate because it needs a hypoxic, immunodeficient environment to grow—exactly the environment present in solid tumors. “We took advantage of this unique feature of E. coli Nissle to home and localize these tumors,” says Nalinikanth Kotagiri, PhD, a University of Cincinnati Cancer Center researcher and associate professor at the UC James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy.
STEP 1:
Create e.coli bacteria that overproduce a mechanism, called a transporter, to pull radiometals inside the membrane.
STEP 3:
Bacteria lodges among the cancer cells that form the solid tumor and proliferates.
STEP 5:
The over-expressed transporters in the bacteria bind with the radioisotopes and moves them inside the cell.
Step-by-Step: Engineered Bacteria
STEP 2:
Inject these bacteria to seek out their desired hypoxic, immunodeficient environment created by solid tumors.
STEP 4:
Inject Copper-67 radioisotope into blood stream.
STEP 6:
The Copper-67 radioisotopes being decaying and emitting high-energy radiation that kills surrounding cancer cells. Because the radiation extends only in a tiny radius, it kills surrounding cancer cells while researching very few healthy cells.
MEET CANCER EXPERT
Trisha Wise-Draper, MD, PhD
Co-director of Head & Neck Cancer Disease Center
The University of Cincinnati Cancer Center has emerged as a national leader in clinical trials, thanks to our institution’s unwavering dedication and our strong emphasis on advancing patient outcomes and pioneering research. Our commitment to excellence has propelled us to the forefront of innovation both locally and on the national stage.
GROWING
RECOGNIZING OUR RAPID RISE
Honors Reflect Standing Among Peer Institutions
In 2023, the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center received two honors that are traditional hallmarks of cancer research centers with NCI designation:
The American Cancer Society awarded the Cancer Center a $360,000 Institutional Research Grant to support recently recruited early-stage researchers. David Plas, PhD, primary investigator for the grant, attributes the win to the partnership between the University of Cincinnati, UC Health and Cincinnati Children’s—the three institutions that created the Cancer Center in 2020.
The grant is “a really substantial validation of the strides that we’ve made as a Cancer Center in a relatively short period of time. Most IRG recipients are NCI-designated centers, which means we’re joining a group of peer institutions that have substantial cancer-focused research activity.”
The Cancer Center also was accepted into the National Cancer Institute’s Experimental Therapeutics Clinical Trials Network (ETCTN). Being part of this elite network of cancer research institutions will provide patients with the earliest access to the most novel cancer therapies.
“The ETCTN is limited to very carefully and rigorously selected institutions. Only large, established cancer centers get to be a part of it, so for us to be accepted shows that the NCI acknowledges our expertise in clinical trials,” says Davendra Sohal, MD, MPH, associate director for clinical research.
PATIENTS ENROLLED IN CANCER CENTER PHASE I CLINICAL TRIALS
Renowned Cancer Researchers
In addition to the cancer leaders profiled above on this page, we are actively building a team of sought-after scientists and clinicians with national and international reputations for moving the fight against cancer forward. These leaders are doing that through their own groundbreaking work, and through connections and collaborations that link the Cancer Center to leading researchers worldwide.
Syed A. Ahmad, MD
Co-Director,
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center
Chief, Division of Surgical Oncology
William L. Barrett, MD
Co-Director,
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center
Medical Director, Barrett Center for Cancer Prevention, Treatment and Research
Thomas Herzog, MD
Director, Gynecological Cancer Disease Center
Vinita Takiar, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Clinical & Vice Chair of Research, Department of Radiation Oncology
Susanne Wells, PhD
Director, Epithelial Carcinogenesis and Stem Cell Program
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center
231 Albert Sabin Way, Suite 2005, Cincinnati, OH 45267
Phone: 513-585-7333