Award
National Institutes of Health 5P01CA217959-08
Tumor microenvironment-dependent therapy resistance
Recipient
CHILDREN'S HOSP OF PHILADELPHIA
Award Amount
$359,100.00
Ceiling
$359,100.00
Awarded
April 27, 2026
Identifier
5P01CA217959-08
This award supports research on tumor microenvironment mechanisms that cause therapy resistance in neuroblastoma, focusing on tumor-associated macrophages and fibroblasts, and testing targeted inhibitors and cellular therapies.
Description
Project 3 focuses on external mechanisms in the tumor microenvironment (TME) that contribute to therapy resistance in neuroblastoma. It emphasizes the role of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) as sources of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines that activate TGFb-dependent and -independent pathways, promoting therapy-resistant mesenchymal neuroblastoma cells. The project aims to test inhibitors of TGFb and JAK/STAT3 and develop TGFb resistant cellular therapies combined with chemo- and immuno-therapy.