Source: University of Colorado Anschutz
Researchers at the University of Colorado Cancer Center are investigating a new strategy to prevent osteosarcoma from spreading to the lungs, the most common and deadly site of metastasis. Veterinary oncologist Dan Regan, DVM, has received a long-term NIH R37 MERIT Award to study a novel drug combination targeting the lung “metastatic niche.” Working with medical oncologist Breelyn Wilky, MD, Regan is focusing on fibroblasts, connective tissue cells that can be hijacked by cancer to promote tumor growth and spread.
The team will test a fibroblast-targeting drug that inhibits focal adhesion kinase (FAK), a signaling pathway hyperactivated in osteosarcoma tumors and their surrounding microenvironment. Combined with standard chemotherapy, the FAK inhibitor aims to both kill cancer cells and disrupt conditions that allow metastasis. The research will be conducted in dogs with naturally occurring osteosarcoma, accelerating translational insights that may ultimately benefit human patients with this rare but aggressive cancer.
Read the full story HERE: https://news.cuanschutz.edu/cancer-center/new-method-stopping-osteosarcoma-from-spreading-to-the-lungs