Project Grant R01CA312002

The National Cancer Institute awarded the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research $752,280 on August 1, 2026, under the Cancer Biology Research program (CFDA 93.396) to decode basal cell multipotency as a precursor and therapeutic target in histological transformation across lung cancer subtypes.

The award funds research into the molecular and cellular mechanisms driving adenocarcinoma transformation to small cell lung cancer or squamous cell carcinoma histology as a resistance mechanism to targeted therapies. The recipient will employ single-nucleus RNA sequencing, single-nucleus ATAC sequencing, cell-free sequencing, and spatial imaging on previously collected patient tumors with documented adenocarcinoma-to-small cell or adenocarcinoma-to-squamous transformations. The work will identify transcriptional and epigenetic changes associated with early basal and terminal transformation states, map gene regulatory network changes along transitions, quantify cellular plasticity to detect populations poised for histological shift, and validate computational predictions in organoid models and primary patient samples. The research aims to establish basal-like states as prognostic and predictive biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets to reverse or prevent transformation.

Performance extends from August 1, 2026, through July 31, 2031, at the recipient's New York, NY location (10065). The assistance type is a Project Grant, standard for investigator-initiated research in cancer biology.