$679,964
Chemoaffinity Agents for the Detection of Prostate Cancer
Washington State University
Focus: To demonstrate a new approach to imaging prostate tumors.
Early prostate cancer and tumor metastasis detection are critical, but accurate and reliable imaging techniques for diagnosis remain a challenge. The researchers will image prostate tumors in animal models using radioactively-labeled inhibitors of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a marker of prostate cancer. Their objective is to build a foundation for the development and commercialization of a new diagnostic tool for prostate cancer based on single-photon emission-computed tomography. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with incidence rates in Washington ranking 15 percent above the national average. This project could lead to better outcomes for patients in the state through earlier diagnosis and improved targeted treatment therapies.
Grant Update
“A lead candidate for a targeted imaging agents for prostate cancer has recently been developed and its in vivo performance has been evaluated. In vitro studies have demonstrated that the radioactive tracer 99mTc-DTPA-LW54 is capable of uniquely rapid uptake and internalization into prostate tumor cells. Preliminary in vivo studies demonstrated that this radioactive tracer accumulates in prostate tumors over the course of 4 hours allowing its clearance from non-tumor tissues. These results support the assumption that 99mTc-DTPA-LW54 can detect prostate tumors as well as the blood vessels around other tumors such as those of breast, colon, and lung cancer. In all likelihood, the parent agent LW54 can be transformed into a targeted chemotherapeutic agent for prostate and other cancers.”
