PHILADELPHIA (April 23, 2020) — Israel Cañadas, PhD, an assistant professor in the Blood Cell Development and Function Research Program at Fox Chase Cancer Center, recently transferred a grant that will allow him to study how different cancer cells within a tumor may affect the environment around it and the tumor’s response to therapy.
Israel Cañadas, PhD
The grant was awarded to Cañadas by the Lung Cancer Research Foundation in 2018 and was transferred after Cañadas began his own lab focusing on tumor immunity and microenvironment at Fox Chase last year. The grant awards Cañadas a total of $150,000 over two years.
“Both small-cell and non-small cell lung cancers contain different subpopulations of cancer cells, a feature known as tumor heterogeneity. Although this cell heterogeneity is a key determinant of cancer progression and drug resistance, how it impacts the immune system in lung cancer patients remains incompletely defined,” Cañadas said. “This project is highly relevant because it could directly improve outcomes for lung cancer patients.”
The research is predicated on a group of genetic elements known as endogenous retroviruses (ERVs). These ERVs become altered in certain drug-resistant populations of lung cancer cells. His work has shown that signaling from ERVs promotes tumor growth; but at the same time, the retroviruses can also make cancer cells vulnerable to immunotherapy.
Cañadas is seeking to connect the drug-resistant cancer cell state to the activation of ERVs and use this information to develop new drugs that could enhance a tumor’s response to immunotherapy.
“The proposed strategy addresses a key unmet need in the field in an effort to overcome resistance to immunotherapy due to intra-tumoral heterogeneity. If the proposed preclinical research shows promising results, we will be directly positioned to open a clinical trial in lung cancer patients using effective combination therapies,” said Cañadas.
Although the research will be focused primarily on lung cancer, Cañadas expects his research findings will impact the treatment of other cancer types that are similarly characterized and driven by different cancer cells within a tumor.
This week’s message from LCRF Executive Director Dennis Chillemi highlights the worldwide #GivingTuesdayNow movement on May 5 and invites you to join in, #TogetherSeparately.
Join us #TogetherSeparately™
Sign up for our next #TogetherSeparately Lung Cancer Community Talk Thursday, April 30 at 12 PM EDT.
Register for Free to Breathe Yoga, happening virtually, all over the country on June 20.
Get our latest information on lung cancer and coronavirus at LCRF.org/COVID19.
In this week’s message from LCRF Executive Director Dennis Chillemi, he thanks those who gathered Thursday for the #TogetherSeparately live talk and makes an exciting announcement about Free to Breathe Yoga.
Join us #TogetherSeparately
Sign up for our next #TogetherSeparately Lung Cancer Community Talk Thursday, April 23 at 12 PM EDT.
Register for Free to Breathe Yoga, happening virtually all over the country on June 20.
Get our latest information on lung cancer and coronavirus at LCRF.org/COVID19.
These days, gathering in large groups is a distant memory. Concerts, festivals, and athletic events have been cancelled, but one runner isn’t letting the coronavirus pandemic get in the way of his goals.
John Glassman had planned to run the BMO Vancouver Marathon, held annually the first Sunday in May. He decided to partner with LCRF to raise awareness and funds for lung cancer research – an issue that has become all too real for him this past year.
“Last summer, my father was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR mutation,” he told his supporters on his fundraising page. “This was a scary experience that left us wondering what the path forward looked like, and what potential outcomes were on the table.“
“Luckily, my Dad found an incredible doctor. And research had generated an incredible drug. Twenty years ago, such a situation would not be likely. But today, my Dad is able to continue living his life and maintaining his health by taking a pill once a day that, in the near term, inhibits further growth of the cancer.”
While John was disappointed that the marathon in Vancouver was cancelled, he decided he needed to keep fundraising. He will do a virtual marathon in May or June, running a 26-mile route of his own creation.
“There’s more work to be done…” John explained. “Research continues in order to find drugs and treatments that will fill in after the effectiveness of this drug declines, which it does after a period of time.”
John has already exceeded his initial fundraising goal, and there’s no stopping him. His fundraising page ends with a request: “Help me outrun lung cancer. :)”
You can donate to John’s efforts here. If you’re interesting in doing your own virtual event, get started by contacting us at events@lcrf.org.
As the world continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, LCRF has heard from many scientists about the challenges in pursuing their important work. We are firmly committed to maintaining the momentum in lung cancer research and have provided additional flexibility for new applicants and our investigators alike. Support for research is critical – perhaps now more than ever.
Deadlines for LCRF’s previously announced 2020 funding opportunities have now been extended to May 29. We know that the COVID-19 pandemic and response measures being taken pose many challenges for scientists, and our goal is to provide investigators with additional flexibility during this unprecedented time.
Three weeks have passed since the shelter at home order was announced for New York, where LCRF’s main office is located. Dennis Chillemi, Executive Director, tells how our lung cancer community is coming together to share information and support one another.
Join the community!
Sign up for our next #TogetherSeparately Lung Cancer Community Talk Thursday, April 16 at 11 AM EDT.
Get our latest information on lung cancer and coronavirus at LCRF.org/COVID19.
It wasn’t a hacking cough. It was more like a tickle … a need to clear my throat when talking. But what seemed so small and insignificant turned into a battle of a lifetime for me.
It was the summer
of 2016 and I was only in my mid-fifties when I went for a chest x-ray. They
found two liters of fluid in my left lung, and I was quickly diagnosed with
stage IV lung cancer.
It was so
advanced, it had spread to other areas, including my leg and hip bones.
Needless to say,
I was shocked. As a personal trainer, I was fit and healthy. I didn’t smoke and
I had no environmental factors that would increase my chances of lung cancer.
So it made sense
that testing showed the cancer was genetic and I began treatment with a first
line drug for genetic cancer. I also had two weeks of daily radiation on my
left thigh to prevent the largest bone in my body from weakening.
I wish I could
say it helped. But it didn’t…
By November, I
was a shadow of my former self. I had no appetite or energy, and I lost 25
pounds. When training my clients, I had to lie down afterward to muster up
enough energy to walk back to my car. My family feared I wouldn’t even make it
to Christmas.
It was a scary
time, especially when scans in November showed the cancer had spread further.
Honestly, I could have lost my life if it weren’t for the advances made by
research into lung cancer.
As my condition
worsened, it turned out there was a new drug, only recently approved, which
targeted my cancer’s specific gene mutation. There was a chance it could help
me. I started it on December 5, 2016. The change was so dramatic, it was like a
switch was flipped somewhere!
I kept training
my clients at the gym, and soon I felt like I could do a little bit of exercise
for myself. Shortly after that, I had enough strength to do a full workout.
From there, my appetite and weight went back up, and so did my energy levels.
Frank’s license plate
I also adopted a personal motto. Some days I felt beaten
down, but I went to bed saying: “Tomorrow, I’m going to WIN The Day.” I knew I
couldn’t just say it – I had to live it and believe it.
Today I’m
healthy. My scans don’t
light up with cancer anymore. And I embrace the platform I’ve been given. I
help fundraise through LCRF’s walks. I also take any opportunity I can to
remind people that they only need to have lungs to be able to get lung cancer.
It doesn’t just happen to smokers.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been scary for everyone, but especially those who have had lung cancer. It’s more important than ever that we WIN The Day, so I’ve joined LCRF’s Facebook group for the Lung Cancer Community to connect with others affected by this disease –patients, caregivers, families, and friends. You can find me there: lcrf.org/facebook-community.
Every day I say a
silent thank-you for the drug that gave me my life back. And the research
behind it… because if I’d developed cancer even two years earlier, that drug
wouldn’t have been available to me. I wouldn’t be here today.
So, I’m proud to
support the Lung Cancer Research Foundation because they’re saving and
extending lives by funding research for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment
and cure of lung cancer.
