New funding from CPRIT will help Rice advance cancer research on several fronts, from strengthening a core genetic engineering facility that serves researchers across Texas to supporting new studies in cancer immunotherapy, next-generation radiation therapy and ovarian cancer.

In a step forward for patient-centered cancer research, a new pilot project reveals that 84% of participants had a positive experience using a newly developed online tool created by the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology called the Participant Engagement Portal (PEP). Alliance created PEP to foster direct connection between cancer researchers and the individuals who volunteer for clinical studies. The goal was to make it easier for patients and clinicians to share information, deliver trial updates, and self-report on social risk factors. The results of this national project are published in JNCI Cancer Spectrum.  

New research on older Floridians reveals a striking disparity in melanoma outcomes. Men experience roughly twice as many melanoma-related deaths as women. Non-Hispanic and white populations also face higher rates of melanoma diagnosis and death than Hispanic groups. Researchers suggest differences likely reflect a combination of higher UV exposure, lower sun-protective behaviors and screening in men, disparities in access to care, and possible biological sex differences in immune response. The findings underscore an uneven burden and urgent need for targeted prevention and early detection.

Bladder cancer remains one of the most prevalent urological malignancies worldwide and is frequently associated with high recurrence rates, metastatic progression, and unfavorable long-term clinical outcomes. Although immune checkpoint blockade targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis has substantially improved therapeutic management for subsets of patients with advanced bladder cancer, durable clinical responses remain limited because of intrinsic and acquired resistance mechanisms within the tumor microenvironment.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally, and for patients with advanced EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), targeted epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) like gefitinib and osimertinib are standard first-line therapies. However, the inevitable emergence of acquired drug resistance severely limits long-term patient survival. While metabolic reprogramming and aerobic glycolysis are known hallmarks of tumor progression, the specific epigenetic pathways fueling TKI resistance remain elusive.