UT Health San Antonio Secures $3 Million to Advance Cancer Research and Prevention
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UT Health San Antonio has been awarded nearly $3 million in new funding from the Cancer Prevention Research institute of Texas (CPRIT), bolstering its ongoing efforts to combat cancer through innovative research and preventative measures. This latest investment, announced on November 19, is part of a larger $154 million funding round and brings CPRIT’s total commitment to cancer research in Texas to $4 billion, making it the second-largest funder of cancer research in the United States after the National Cancer institute.
CPRIT’s Long-Term investment in San Antonio
Since 2010, CPRIT has awarded UT Health San Antonio almost $170 million, demonstrating a sustained commitment to the institution’s groundbreaking work. The state agency prioritizes funding for evidence-based cancer research and prevention, and this latest investment supports three key projects focused on ovarian cancer prevention, liver cancer treatment, and metastatic breast cancer.
Proactive Ovarian Cancer Prevention in South Texas
Antonio Lawrenson, MD, is leading an initiative to increase access to preventative fallopian tube removal for women in South Texas.
“The goal of this project is to maximize opportunities for fallopian tube removal in South Texas,” Lawrenson stated. The project will focus on offering salpingectomy to pregnant patients undergoing cesarean sections who request tubal ligation,as well as individuals undergoing non-gynecologic abdominal surgery. Lawrenson emphasized the potential impact, noting that “Fallopian tube removal during non-gynecologic abdominal surgery has huge potential for local and global impact on reducing ovarian cancer diagnoses, since abdominal surgery is very common and offers an untapped opportunity to prevent these deadly tumors.”
Novel Approaches to Liver Cancer Treatment
Xiaoli Sun, MD, PhD, an assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the Long School of Medicine, has been awarded $900,000 to investigate new methods for preventing and treating liver cancer. This disease is especially prevalent in South Texas due to high rates of obesity, diabetes, and fatty liver disease. Sun, a 2021 CPRIT Scholar in Cancer Research, is a member of the UT Health San Antonio mays Cancer Center, the Sam and Ann Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies, and the UT Health San Antonio transplant Center.
Sun’s research centers on oxidized phospholipids (OxPLs), harmful fat-like molecules that accumulate in damaged liver tissue and tumors when the liver is stressed.”Our findings show that OxPLs can worsen liver disease. They increase inflammation, damage healthy cells, and disrupt the immune system’s ability to fight cancer,” Sun explained. The project aims to determine if blocking OxPLs with an antibody called E06 can restore the immune system’s cancer-fighting capabilities, potentially leading to new preventative and therapeutic strategies, particularly for communities in South Texas.
Targeting Therapy Resistance in Metastatic Breast Cancer
Zhijie “Jason” Liu, PhD, a tenured professor in the Department of Molecular Medicine, received $899,991 to study endocrine-resistant metastatic breast cancer. Liu, a 2016 CPRIT Scholar in Cancer Research, is focusing on mutations in the estrogen receptor α (ERα) that allow cancer cells to continue growing even during hormone therapy.
“Our research examines how breast cancer cells with ERα mutations use small non-coding RNAs and protein clusters to form ‘enhancer condensates’ that turn on cancer-growth signals, even without estrogen or during endocrine therapy,” Liu said. By understanding these mechanisms of resistance, researchers hope to develop more effective treatments for patients with hard-to-treat breast cancer and improve outcomes for individuals from all backgrounds.
A Collaborative Vision for the Future
Jennifer Sharpe Potter,PhD,MPH,senior executive vice president for research and innovation at UT San Antonio,highlighted the transformative impact of CPRIT’s funding. “CPRIT’s unwavering commitment…is nothing short of transformative. It fuels the bold vision and relentless dedication of our world-class scientists and clinicians,” she stated.”The spirit of collaboration and innovation here inspires us every day to push boundaries, accelerate breakthrough discoveries and deliver hope and healing to the people of South Texas and the world.”
