Development of EGFR-Based Imaging Agents for Breast Cancer
Creators: name: University Of California Office Of The President
Publisher: name: University of California Office of the President
publisherIdentifier: https://ror.org/00dmfq477
publisherIdentifierScheme: ROR
Year: 2024

description: The aim of this project is to develop new radioactively labeled pharmaceuticals (radiopharmaceuticals) for the early detection of breast cancer using nuclear medicine imaging methods. The nuclear medicine procedure involves the injection of a radiopharmaceutical that is attracted to and preferentially accumulates in the breast tumor. The patient is then placed in an imaging device called a scanner to show the physician where the radiopharmaceutical has gone. In this case we are looking for accumulation in tumors that have a special receptor called the epidermal growth factor receptor. Only 45% of breast cancers have epidermal growth factor receptors, however, tumors with these receptors are harder to treat and do not respond to conventional hormonal treatment. Therefore, it is important that the earlier these tumors are detected the sooner any treatment can begin. Nuclear Medicine imaging agents can provide information about the tumor faster than biopsy, is less invasive than a biopsy and uses no more radiation than an ordinary X ray.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 This research is intended to address the earlier detection of breast cancer CBCRP priority issue. The development of these radiolabeled pharmaceuticals relates directly to an approach towards a more sensitive, less invasive technological advance for breast cancer detection. These pharmaceuticals are intended to be used with positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging devices.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 This project is perhaps the first of its kind that is seeking to develop an imaging agent to target epidermal growth factor receptors in breast cancer. We have brought together a multidisciplinary team of scientists and physicians to perform the research on these new radiopharmaceuticals. We have chemists and biochemists from LBNL to make these new radiopharmaceuticals and a molecular pharmacologist from Purdue University in Indiana and physicians from UCSF to help provide the expertise and experiments to test them.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 There are three aspects to the translation potential of this proposal. First, the radiopharmaceuticals we are developing may be used for diagnosis and monitoring treatment. Second, information about how the radiopharmaceuticals behave in a living system is important for developing new chemotherapeutic or radiotherapeutic drugs. Third, the systematic approach that we are proposing for the development of these radiopharmaceuticals may be applied to the development of radiopharmaceuticals for other breast tumor receptors.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Finally, nuclear medicine techniques have a positive impact on the reduction of human and economic costs of breast cancer. These techniques are non-invasive and can provide localization information as well as some clinical evaluation of the type of disease in a single procedure, thus reducing the need for separate detection and biopsy procedures. This has both human and economic benefits by providing reliable, fast detection and diagnostic information. This in turn can have a positive impact on survivability by fostering rapid treatment response.