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Funding Opportunities
A broad list of sarcoma research funding opportunities to make it easier for researchers to find opportunities that advance their work. Learn more about research grant deadlines and how to apply for a SFA grant.
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Latest Sarcoma Research
Phase IB/II Trial with Correlative Analyses of Doxorubicin plus Durvalumab Combination in Patients with Advanced Soft Tissue Sarcoma
Researchers conducted an open-label, phase IB/II study in patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma (STS) who have not been previously treated with a class of chemotherapies called anthracyclines, or PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors (these work to “release the brakes” that the tumors place on a patient’s immune system), which then may allow the immune system to fight the tumor.
The purpose of the clinical trial was to determine the efficacy and safety of doxorubicin (an anthracycline) combined with durvalumab, a PD-L1 inhibitor. Additionally, the trial looked to identify patients who would most likely benefit from this treatment combination. In total, 41 patients that were evaluated, 1 (2.4%) achieved a complete response and 12 (29.3%) achieved a confirmed partial response. Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 7.6 months, and median overall survival was 23.8 months.
Analysis indicated that the absence genetic alterations in a cell signaling pathway called RTKRAS and high levels the PD-1 protein were predictors of longer PFS. Additional studies need to be carried out, but the combination of doxorubicin plus durvalumab may prove to be an effective treatment for a subset of patients with advanced STS.
ASPSCR1:TFE3 Drives Alveolar Soft Part Sarcoma by Inducing Targetable Transcriptional Programs
This study involves a new possible therapeutic strategy for alveolar soft part sarcoma (ASPS), a sarcoma known to be driven by the ASPSCR1::TFE3 fusion. In ASPSCR1:TFE3 Drives Alveolar Soft Part Sarcoma by Inducing Targetable Transcriptional Programs, the investigators strive to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms by which the fusion drives cancer growth and help identify potential therapeutic targets. They determined that the ASPSCR1:TFE3 fusion regulated essential cell programs involved in cell proliferation, angiogenesis, and mitochondrial biology. They also found that the fusion increased cell proliferation by increasing levels of a protein called cyclin D1. They found that inhibition of cyclin D1 signaling decreased cell growth and when combined with inhibition of another protein called CDK4/6, it led to tumor growth in a model of ASPS. These results indicate a possible therapeutic strategy for ASPS.
Safety And Efficacy Of Combination Lurbinectedin Plus Doxorubicin From A Phase 1b Trial In Patients With Advanced/Metastatic Soft Tissue Sarcoma.
In this study, patients with advanced/metastatic soft tissue sarcoma were treated with lurbinectedin (binds to DNA inhibiting transcription and causing double strand DNA breaks) and doxorubicin (inserts into the DNA also inhibiting transcription) to determine the recommended phase 2 dose of full-dose lurbinectedin with low-dose doxorubicin. The treatment was also found to be safe and tolerable. There were several subtypes enrolled with signals of activity in leiomyosarcoma (LMS), Dedifferentiated Liposarcoma (DDLPS), undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS), endometrial stromal sarcoma, and myxofibrosarcoma with an objective response rate (ORR) of 60% and estimated median PFS of 16.5 months. These data support the ongoing randomized phase 2 study in patients with LMS comparing lurbinectedin/doxorubicin with doxorubicin alone.
