2024 LCRF Research Grant on Understanding Resistance in Lung Cancer
William Feng, PhD
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Research Project:
Targeting AP-1 in KRAS-mutant lung cancer
Summary:
This research explores a potential weakness in lung cancer by targeting AP-1, a group of transcription factors that act as an “on/off switch” for genes essential to cancer cell survival. Previous studies show that EGFR-mutant lung cancers rely on AP-1 for resistance to therapies, and this study investigates whether KRAS-mutant lung cancers do the same. The project will evaluate AP-1 as a drug target, test whether inhibiting it can effectively treat KRAS-mutant lung cancers and develop a new drug to block AP-1 function. This work could lead to groundbreaking therapies for currently untreatable lung cancers.