Research & Results

The Gateway for Cancer Research is eager to fund treatment innovators^SM working in any cancer area—providing their study meets our rigorous criteria. We’re focused on achieving results that help improve the lives of cancer patients TODAY.

• Blood Cancer/Transplantation

  Malignancies that attack blood or bone marrow are called hematologic cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 113,000 people were diagnosed with hematologic cancers in 2006 (the most recent year for which we have data). Transplants are common in the treatment of hematologic cancers. The Gateway currently funds three studies in this field:

  1. A Novel Approach for Prevention and Treatment of Chronic Graft-vs.-Host Disease in Allogenic Stem Cell Transplantation
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Corey Cutler, MD, MPH, FRCP(C) of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

  Potential Impact: Blood cancer patients often need bone marrow transplantation. The biggest risk is graft vs. host disease. This study hopes to demonstrate that a novel use of monoclonal antibody therapy may lead to the prevention and treatment of steroid-refractory chronic GVHD and increase a patient’s chance of survival.

  2. Adoptive Immunotherapy with Donor Tumor Idiotype-specific T-Cells
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Larry W. Kwak, MD, PhD of MD Anderson Cancer Center

  Potential Impact: This team is developing a novel immune therapy for patients with blood cancers. By transferring highly-enriched populations of specific T-Cells from donor/sibling to recipient, it is expected that the cancer patient will have a stronger immune response, and an increased chance of survival.

  3. Blockade of PD-1 in Conjunction with the Dendritic Cell/Myeloma Vaccines Following Stem Cell Transplantation
  
  

  Primary Investigator: David Avigan, MD of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

  Potential Impact: Administration of an anti-PD-1 antibody in conjunction with the Dendritic Cell/Myeloma vaccine to elicit anti-tumor responses and disease stabilization.

• Breast Cancer

  Breast cancer affects both women and men; the National Cancer Institute estimates that approximately 210,000 people will be diagnosed with the disease in 2010; almost 40,000 will die from breast cancer. The Gateway currently funds one study in this field:

  1. Feasibility Trial of Cyclophosphamide-Modulated Vaccination with an Allogenic, GM-CSF-secreting Breast Cancer Vaccine in the Setting of Weekly Trastuzumab Therapy in HER-2/neu-positive Metastatic Breast Cancer

  
  Primary Investigator: Leisha A. Emens, MD, PhD of John Hopkins University

  
  

  Potential Impact: By combining two vaccines that function differently with a standard chemotherapy regimen, this study hopes to generate a more robust T-cell response in order to shrink existing breast tumors.

• Colorectal Cancer/Anal Cancer

  Cancers that affect the colon, rectum and anus will be diagnosed in almost 148,000 men and women, according to the National Cancer Institute. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer in the U.S. The Gateway currently funds three studies in this field: (background pulled from http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/colorectal/, http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/colon-and-rectal and http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/anal)

  1. Targeting Inducible Radioresistance Using Curcumin in Rectal Cancer
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Sunil Krishnan, MD of MD Anderson Cancer Center

  Potential Impact: The combination of standard chemoradiation therapy (CRT) combined with curcumin (found in many spices) may improve a patient’s response to treatment.

  2. Phase II Study for Treatment of Anal HSIL through Use of a Chinese Herbal Topical Cream
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Misha Cohen, OMD of University of California, San Francisco

  Potential Impact: Lesions are often the precursor to anal cancer. A new noninvasive Chinese herbal topical ointment, AIJP, will treat precancerous anal lesions and may prevent their progression to anal cancer.
  
  
  3. Vitamin D Levels in Colorectal Cancer: Prognostic Significance and Preliminary Explorations of Therapeutic Intervention
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Kathleen Wesa, MD of Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research

  Potential Impact: Determine if it is clinically possible to achieve and maintain normal serum Vitamin D levels in patients with metastatic colon cancer on front-line treatment.

• Leukemia/Lymphoma

  Leukemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma will account for approximately 108,000 new cases of cancer in 2010, according to the National Cancer Institute. Leukemia and lymphoma together encompass many different types of cancer. The Gateway currently funds two studies in this field: (background pulled from http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/non-hodgkin and http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/leukemia)

  1. CD3 Immunotoxin Therapy of CTCL
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Arthur E. Frankel, MD of Scott and White Memorial Hospital, Sherwood and Brinkley Foundation

  
  

  Potential Impact: The new agent molecule seeks and selectively destroys tumor cells with reduced injury to normal tissues compared to chemotherapy.

  2. Immuno-gene therapy for Non Hodgkin Lymphoma using intranodal injection of Ad-ISF35
  
  

  Primary Investigator: Januario E. Castro, MD of UCSD Moores Cancer Center

  Potential Impact: Lymphoma and some types of Leukemia don’t seem to respond well to standard forms of treatment. This study expects to find that injecting an immunogenetic compound directly into the lymph nodes of patients will be more effective at reducing cancer cells and increasing anti-tumor immune response in patients.

• Pancreatic Cancer

  The National Cancer Institute estimates that in 2010, approximately 43,000 men and women will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Compared to other cancer types, pancreatic cancer—which is often diagnosed at later stages—has a higher average mortality rate. The Gateway currently funds one study in this field: (background pulled from http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/pancreatic and http://www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/servingpeople/snapshots/Pancreatic.pdf)

  1. Phase I Study of Soluble Lag-3 (Imp321) and Gemcitabine in Patients with Advanced Pancreas Cancer
  
  

  Primary Investigator: William G. Hawkins, MD of Washington University School of Medicine

  Potential Impact: There is evidence that pancreatic cancer cells attract cells from a patient’s immune system that signal “no illness” to the body. This study is using a novel treatment strategy to turn off these “no illness” cells and turn on the immune cells that fight illness, potentially offering a better chance of survival for pancreatic cancer patients.

• Targeted Systemic Therapies

  Targeted systemic therapies use drugs, supplements or other substances to block the growth and spread of cancer—and to improve quality of life during and after treatment. The Gateway currently funds one study in this field: (background pulled from http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Therapy/targeted)

  1. A Phase I Study of High-Dose IV Vitamin C Treatment
  
  

  Primary Investigators: Christopher Stephenson, DO, Robert Levin, MD, and Christopher Lis, MPH of CTCA Midwestern Regional Medical Center

  Potential Impact: The ascorbic acid in Vitamin C has been found to increase energy and a feeling of wellness but it is difficult to get levels of effectiveness through oral Vitamin C. This study seeks to demonstrate high-dose IV vitamin C therapy in late-stage cancer patients is safe and effective in improving their quality of life in order to give their bodies a better chance to maximize treatment.