Developmental Therapeutics Program

Scientific Goal

The goals of the Developmental Therapeutics (DT) Program are to reduce cancer burden through integration of the processes of discovery, development, and delivery of new anticancer agents.

Program Goals

Drug Discovery

Most drug discovery now occurs within the pharmaceutical industry. However, UCCC Developmental Therapeutics Program members working in signal transduction, natural products and drug targeting are discovering novel anticancer agents. As a result, we have had two successful RAID applications and will enter two drugs into phase I clinical trials in 2008.

Preclinical Development

DT Program members are also involved in important preclinical valildation of agents discovered here or by the pharmaceutical industry. Our members are working in stem cell biology, pharmacology, MRS/MRI, novel combinations and veterinary oncology to develop hypotheses that can be tested, rather than developed, in early clinical trials.

Early Clinical Development

Novel anticancer therapy testing begins in phase I clinical trials. Testing efficacy of new agents is becoming increasingly complex. New targets may vary considerably among tumor subsets, and agents may target several pathways. DT Program members interact extensively with the NCI Cancer Therapy and Evaluation Program (CTEP) and the biopharmaceutical industry in our work. Our Phase I program—one of just 16 in the nation—is in its fifth year of funding from a U01 grant that allows us to partner with the NCI in the early development of novel agents.

Delivery

Clinical members of the DT Program provide high-quality cancer care by incorporating phase II and phase III trials into disease-specific settings. Delivery also includes Pediatric and Radiation Oncology (non-TRM, HRM), as well as tumor types that are not included in the TRM and HRM Programs (GI, cutaneous oncology, BMT, leukemia/lymphoma, sarcoma, AIDS-related malignancies, and hematology).

Program Activities

• During the 2006-2007 reporting period, Developmental Therapeutics Program members received over $11 million in research funding, almost a 30 percent increase in total funding. What's more, over 36 percent of our funding is NCI supported—double that of the previous reporting period.
• During this time, new faculty brought in new NCI grants and Dr. Madeleine Kane's K12 training grant was renewed. Program members submitted several new K23 and R231 grants in late 2007.
• In 2007, the DT Program initiated a collaboration with the Molecular Oncology Program. Dr. Gail Eckhardt and Dr. Jessica Tyler held a joint one-day symposium in August that included members of each program and posters.

Program Members

The DT Program has a total 63 members, including 42 full members and 21 associate members. View membership list.

Publications

The Developmental Therapeutics Program produced171 cancer-related publications from Oct. 1, 2006 through Sept. 30, 2007. Of these, 66 (39%) were inter-programmatic or inter- and intra-programmatic publications; 45 (26%) were intra-programmatic or inter- and intra-programmatic publications. View publications (pdf)