Development and preclinical evaluation of tumor models for targeted radiopharmaceutical research.

Introduction

Accounting for 90% of cancer-related deaths, metastasis represents the greatest challenge in oncology, as cancer cells spread to vital organs and evade traditional therapies such as chemotherapy and external beam radiotherapy. Recent clinical evidence points to targeted radioligand therapy as a breakthrough approach to addressing this gap in cancer care, offering highly effective treatments with minimal side effects.

This project centers on the investigation of cutting-edge FAPI radioligands that specifically target the tumor microenvironment, focusing on Fibroblast Activation Protein (FAP), which is overexpressed in the metastatic stroma across a wide range of cancers. This pan-cancer, one-fits-all approach seeks to employ newly developed FAP inhibitor (FAPI) radioligands designed to improve tumor retention and precision in targeting metastatic lesions for therapeutic applications.

Project description

The student will be involved in the development and evaluation of in vivo tumour mouse models to investigate the therapeutic potential of radiopharmaceuticals. This will include various experimental techniques and activities, such as cell culture, mouse inoculations, animal monitoring and follow-up, tissue dissection, and subsequent tissue processing and analysis.

In parallel, the student will gain experience with in vitro models to investigate the binding and uptake of the radioligands in tumour cells. This will involve assisting with experimental preparation, participating in the execution of in vitro experiments, and gaining insight into the analysis and interpretation of the results.

A candidate has already been selected for this project.