Replication studies for Kaposi Sarcoma mice

Univ Of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

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Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT This application is being submitted in response to the Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) identified as NOT-RM- 24-013. Angiogenesis is central to cancer development; together with Angiosarcoma and Hemangioma, Kaposi Sarcoma (KS) is the most angiogenic cancer in humans. KS is the most common cancer in people living with HIV worldwide. In the USA today, KS is concentrated in underrepresented minorities (URM) of black race or Hispanic ethnicity as well as in underserved and marginalized populations. The current frontline regimen for KS was developed in the 1980s. Despite its discovery over 25 years ago, no proper, immune-competent animal model existed for KS or aggressive angiosarcoma until last year, when we published a novel genetically engineered mouse model (GEMM) funded by RO1 CA250080. This novel GEMM fills a gap that has hampered novel therapy and vaccine developments for these cancers. The last experiment in our manuscript describes the first drug evaluation in this new cancer model. We propose repeating this experiment with an independent CRO to establish a repeatable, robust, and rigorous basis for the field. This will yield a best practices manual for drug testing in this model.