Photo: CF scientist Nindo Punturi and CF grantee Dr. Ron Firestein connect at one of the world’s largest cancer meetings
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Chordoma on the global research stage
Last week, three members of our research team joined more than 20,000 researchers for the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting. There, they advanced multiple collaborations, scouted for opportunities to apply cutting edge science to chordoma, and shared recent results from CF Labs.
Notably, one of our scientists, Nindo Punturi, presented a poster which builds the case for combining two complementary treatment strategies: therapies that exploit a vulnerability called replication stress in chordoma cells, and certain immunotherapies. Multiple conversations stemmed from this work about pairing these approaches in a clinical trial.
Several other highlights from AACR:
- Two companies, X-Chem and Talus Bio, presented progress they’ve made towards discovering brachyury drugs, both leveraging capabilities of CF Labs.
- Our grantees Dr. Joseph Schwab and Maoyang Qi from Cedars Sinai Medical Center presented a new approach to increase the ability of CAR-T cells to attack chordoma tumors.
- Dr. Rose Yang from the National Cancer Institute presented the largest population-based study of chordoma to date, noting an intriguing increase in incidence over time in the U.S. (It remains to be determined whether this is a true increase or a reflection of improving diagnostics, access to care, and/or data capture.)
New publications from our grantees
Projects we’re supporting also resulted in several new papers recently:
- Dr. Christopher Alvarez-Breckenridge’s team at MD Anderson Cancer Center published the first preclinical rationale for oncolytic viral therapy in chordoma: a treatment approach that uses engineered viruses to infect and kill cancer cells while also stimulating an immune response against the tumor.
- Dr. Mateusz Bujko's team in Poland published two new pieces of work: a paper showing a genetic change in tumors linked to more aggressive disease behavior, including transformation to dedifferentiated chordoma, and a preprint identifying four distinct biological subgroups of skull base chordoma, which could eventually point the way toward more personalized treatment approaches.
View all of the posters and publications from projects we’ve supported here.
Doubling down on promising research
We’ve awarded follow-on grants to two research teams whose early work has yielded promising results. Dr. Claudia Scholl's lab at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) will dig deeper into what it means that brachyury expression levels vary within chordoma tumors, which could have implications for how to target it. And at MD Anderson, Dr. Anthony Conley's team will analyze tumor samples collected during the recently completed cetuximab trial with the goal of identifying biomarkers that may help predict who is most likely to respond to this treatment.
Yaguang Si, PhD, CF Senior Director of Preclinical Research
Welcoming new scientific talent
We're excited to welcome Yaguang Si, PhD as our new Sr. Director of Preclinical Research. Yaguang brings 15 years of experience in oncology drug discovery at successful biotech companies, with particular expertise in targeting transcription factors, a category of proteins that includes brachyury. His arrival significantly expands our capacity to advance drug discovery and repurposing, and to advance collaborations with more companies and investigators.
Speaking of talent, we’re hiring!
First, we’re recruiting a Nurse Navigator (fully remote) to deepen the level of support provided through our Patient Navigation Service. If you know someone who would thrive as a go-to resource for chordoma patients and families, we'd love to hear from them.
We're also hiring a fractional life sciences Contracts Attorney to speed up chordoma R&D by helping efficiently execute a growing number of agreements with academic and industry collaborators.
Chordoma survivor Ashley and her son stand beside a plaque honoring her late aunt
“Surround yourself with positive people”: Ashley’s story
In 2020, Ashley's vision suddenly blurred and doubled, resulting in emergency surgery for a golf-ball-sized chordoma pressing against her carotid artery. As she shares in her Uncommon Story, a remarkable outpouring of love and support from family and friends carried her through recovery and on to the full life she’s enjoyed in the years since.
Fundraise for better treatments and care
Much of our progress has been made possible by community members who rally their own networks around this cause. If you've ever thought about fundraising for the Chordoma Foundation, our toolkit is a great place to start. People have hosted runs, game nights, golf tournaments, and more; others have simply set up an online fundraising page and shared it with friends and family, no event required. Whatever feels right for you, we’re here to help you get started and cheer you on!
2023 International Chordoma Community Conference
Register to join us in Boston!
Registration is open for our International Chordoma Community Conference, September 18–20 in Boston. Patients and caregivers around the world are invited to join us to connect with one another and hear the latest updates in research and care.
We’re also thrilled to share that Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute will serve as the presenting sponsor for this year’s Community Conference, helping make this special gathering possible.
Additionally, researchers and clinicians are encouraged to attend our upcoming Research Workshop on September 17-18. (Abstract submissions open through May 15!)
Thank you to our sponsors!
We're deeply grateful to our sponsors for their generous support of our upcoming International Chordoma Community Conference and International Chordoma Research Workshop—and their commitment to improving care and outcomes for chordoma patients.
Interested in supporting an event? Contact us at events@chordoma.org
