A $1.5 million federal grant will help University of Arkansas at Fayetteville researchers develop ways to fight the recurrence of cancer, the university has announced.
David Zaharoff, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering, is the principal investigator on the project receiving funds over a five-year period from the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health.
The UA researchers will focus on hidden tumors that exist after the removal of visible tumors.
"The cancer vaccines and immunotherapies we are developing have the potential to prevent this recurrence," Zaharoff said in a statement, noting that such secondary tumors are the leading cause of death for cancer patients.
He will collaborate with Suresh Kumar, an associate professor in UA's department of chemistry and biochemistry.
The project furthers Zaharoff's work with cytokines, which are proteins linked to the body's immune system.
Metro on 07/30/2014