# NIH Reporter #1P01CA295557-01A1

ZFP281-driven early spread, dormancy and locoregional and distant relapse

**Recipient:** Albert Einstein College of Medicine

**Award Amount:** $591,191.00
**Ceiling:** $591,191.00

**Awarded:** August 26, 2026

**Identifier:** 1P01CA295557-01A1

This project focuses on understanding the role of ZFP281, macrophages, and collagen I ECM in breast cancer cell dissemination, dormancy, and relapse, aiming to develop strategies to prevent metastasis.

### Description

We will study in breast cancer models and human samples how ZFP281, macrophages, and collagen I ECM signals regulate early dissemination and dormancy of cancer cells, and their niches for reactivation. The project investigates the transcriptional and chromatin landscape governed by ZFP281 in early disseminated cancer cells (E-DCCs), its influence on dissemination and dormancy, and how macrophages influence E-DCC fate. It also assesses macrophage-induced phenotypic changes in mouse models to link them to relapse dynamics.

[View original record](https://reporter.nih.gov/search/IgE1H2ioLUOz0qmA4MDg0Q/project-details/11335051)