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Microbes & Cancer

Synthetic Biology, Microbiome, Gene & Cell Therapy

As various research fields progress, so too do potential avenues towards the development of improved cancer treatment and detection strategies arising from these disparate research fields. The microbiome of cancer patients represents one such evolving avenue. Differences in the composition of the gut microbiome between different cancer patient cohorts have been reported for several years, and the existence of a tumour microbiome is receiving increasing attention (the ‘oncobiome’). Following such characterisation studies by our team (‘what’), we pursue ‘so what’ studies to understand any significance and mechanisms of interactions with the body. For development of medical interventions, we apply our findings in ‘now what’ studies. For example, we engineer designer bacteria (tumour-colonising bacteria) and designer proteins as therapeutics or diagnostics (Principal Investigator: Professor Mark Tangney).

The impact of this research will be the development of personalised treatment strategies for cancer patients, based on their microbiome profile. This project is providing a fundamental insight into microbiome dynamics during cancer progression and therapy, and opening new avenues for developing diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. 

 

BCRF: Microbiome Immunotherapy Neoadjuvant Assessment (MINA) 

This research is a joint effort between Prof. Mark Tangney and Prof. Roisin Connolly, funded by BCRF. The project focuses on investigating the intra-tumour and stool microbiome of patients with triple-negative breast cancer. The main aim of the study is to evaluate the change in breast cancer microbiome composition pre- and post-neoadjuvant therapy in patients with early stage TNBC undergoing neoadjuvant systemic therapy.

Clinical Microbiome Studies Underway

Project name: 

Site:  

Clinical PI 

Microbiome biomarker prediction of response to cancer therapies 

Bon Secours Hospital Cork 

Dr Brian Bird 

Microbiome Immunotherapy Neoadjuvant Assessment (MINA) 

Cancer Research @UCC 

Prof Roisin Connolly 

A prospective observational study investigating the impact of the gut microbiome constitution on the response to neo-adjuvant chemotherapy and neo-adjuvant chemo-radiation in early-stage breast cancers and early-stage gastrointestinal cancers 

Beaumont Hospital; Cancer Research @UCC 

Prof Bryan Hennessy 

Single arm phase 2 trial of neoadjuvant trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) with response-directed definitive therapy in early stage HER2-positive breast cancer: a standard chemotherapy-sparing approach to curative-intent treatment: SHAMROCK 

Beaumont Hospital; Cancer Research @UCC 

Prof Bryan Hennessy 

GAMBIT: Genomic, Acquired Immunologic and Microbial Biomarkers of Immunotherapy Response and Toxicity to Immunotherapy in Cancer 

Beaumont Hospital; Cancer Research @UCC 

Prof Jarushka Naidoo 

 

AllCaN Pancreatic 

St. Vincent's Hospital 

Prof Gráinne O’Kane 

 

Cancer Research @UCC

4th floor, Western Gateway Building , Western Road, Cork

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