TransAtlantic Cancer Alliance for Liquid Biopsy Research and Training
The TransAtlantic Cancer Alliance for Liquid Biopsy Research and Training project was recently funded by the HRB All-Ireland NCI Cancer Consortium (AICC) grant. This project, led by Dr Kathy Gately, a senior clinical lecturer at the Trinity St. James Cancer Institute (TSJCI) and colleagues, focuses on developing a network of liquid biopsy experts and data scientists across the island of Ireland in collaboration with National Cancer Institute (NCI) experts at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), Baltimore, US. The project was co-created in consultation with clinician scientists (Prof Patrick Forde (TSJCI/JHU) and Prof Valsamo Anagnostou (JHU)) and an All-Ireland team of thoracic surgeons (Mr Gerard Fitzmaurice and Mr Rory Beattie), pathologists (Prof Stephen Finn & Prof John O’Leary), clinicians (Prof Jarushka Naidoo & Dr Aidan O’Brien), translational research scientists (Prof Paul Mullan, Prof Lorraine O’Driscoll, Dr Ezgi Oner & Dr Sharon O’Toole), research nurse (Ms Sinead Hurley), patient advocate Mr Seamus Cotter, bioinformatician (Dr Pilib O’Broin) and the Northern Ireland Biobank. Each providing first-hand knowledge of the needs of the Irish health research and services system North and South. The project will hire a research assistant and post-doctoral fellow who will initially focus on advancing liquid biopsy research for patients with lung cancer with the goal of expanding to other cancer types.
The liquid biopsy (LB) has emerged as an important minimally invasive tool to detect micrometastatic disease and assess changes longitudinally at more frequent intervals. The LB tumor circulome comprises circulating tumor cells, tumor DNA (mutated/methylated), RNA, proteins and extracellular vesicles (EVs) that are shed from the tumor and are implicated in various cancer processes. Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) released into the blood due to apoptosis, necrosis and phagocytosis is known as circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) when it originates from tumor cells. ctDNA is the most extensively studied component of the LB and is used to identify patients harboring minimal residual disease (MRD) following curative treatment and guide the administration of adjuvant therapy. Our goal is to co-analyse the multiple LB components in longitudinal patient samples.
The TransAtlantic Cancer Alliance will expand and add value to the HEA funded, All-Ireland Liquid Biopsies Consortium (CLuB) (Figure 1). Together, novel circulating tumor biomarkers and predictive signatures identified will be developed as diagnostic assays to support personalised medicine approaches for patient care. The Alliance will also establish an inter-organisational scientific exchange programme for innovative training and education opportunities, for the next generation of LB leaders.
The post-doctoral fellow working on this project and two additional researchers, will have the opportunity to undertake LB research and training, in Prof Anagnostou’s molecular oncology laboratory, at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at JHU. The postdoc will train for 2 years and the two researchers for 2 months at JHU and will facilitate knowledge transfer upon their return to Ireland. Anagnostou leads a dynamic and diverse group focusing on studying tumor evolution under selective pressure of cancer therapies, especially immunotherapy. She has discovered novel genomic mechanisms of response and resistance to cancer immunotherapy and tied those to evolutionary trajectories of ctDNA in blood.
Her team are particularly interested in translating scientific discoveries in clinical cancer care, with clinical trials underway that capitalize on their liquid biopsy discoveries.
Ongoing studies include genomic mechanisms of response and resistance to immunotherapy, cancer cell and tumor microenvironment evolution, development of minimally invasive methodologies to capture MRD and identification of tissue and blood-derived genomic biomarkers of response to therapies.
Anagnostou has a keen focus on mentorship and career development of lab members and employs a personalised mentorship approach. The post-doc will have the opportunity to participate in the International Society for Liquid Biopsy (ISLB) annual meetings, present their work, and engage with world renown experts as well as participate in the ISLB Young Committee, which offers additional mentorship, networking and professional development opportunities, aimed at empowering the post-doctoral fellows to become future leaders in the field. Secondments to JHU will be an integral part of the TransAtlantic Cancer Alliance’s education and training programme and will provide a unique opportunity for significant career development for researchers.
This specialised training, generously supported by Prof Anagnostou and JHU, will establish an impactful mechanism for inter-organisational, knowledge exchange between research leaders at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center and All-Ireland Cancer Centres and academic partners.
This unique collaboration brings together leading experts with a wealth of diverse knowledge and experience to further strengthen and sustain the development of a transatlantic, cross-border, network for clinical cancer research and innovation to advance the LB in the clinic for personalised patient care.
Written by Dr Kathy Gately
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