UNC School of Medicine’s Melissa Troester, PhD, MPH, named among group of cutting-edge researchers to receive funding to fuel breakthroughs in breast cancer care.
Melissa Troester, PhD, MPH, received a Leadership Grant from Susan G. Komen as part of a continuing commitment to accelerating breast cancer research. The award is $200,000 and represents continuation of on-going five-year investment in Troester’s work that has overall contributed $1 million to understand how immune cell landscapes can be modified to stop cancer.
“Susan G. Komen has been an incredible partner with breast cancer researchers. Their impact ranges from funding investigator-initiated grants to building resources like the Komen Tissue Bank and Shares for Cures,” said Troester, who is co-leader of the UNC Lineberger Cancer Epidemiology Research Program and professor of epidemiology at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. “I’ve collaborated with Komen on many of these resources and I can say from experience that Komen is changing the landscape for breast cancer patients in the best possible way. I’m delighted to be part of the Komen research community.”
The new grant will support Troester’s recent advances in spatial biology – an understanding of how distances between cancer cells and immune cells alter breast cancer outcomes.
“Most tools for assessing immune responses to cancer count up cells and provide a score,” said Troester. “Our recent work has shown that in some cases, the total cell count is not as important as having the right cells in the right place. By directly studying immune communities and how they populate the space around and inside a tumor, we can better predict whether the immune system can stop cancer from spreading.”
In addition to this Leadership Grant, Komen has been an important contributor to the research infrastructure for the Carolina Breast Cancer Study (CBCS), a landmark 30+ year research initiative that has fundamentally changed the understanding of breast cancer disparities. Troester notes that this initiative was the first to study the prevalence of the Basal-like subtype identified by Chuck Perou, PhD, co-leader of the UNC Lineberger Breast Cancer Research Program and team. The current phase of CBCS (Phase 4) has also received load bearing support from Komen.
“The Komen Foundation understands how research works and has a keen prioritization of the work that will most profoundly impact breast cancer patients,” said Troester. “The continued support of breast cancer work in Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC) , including both population science work like mine, but also clinical and basic research (i.e. Gaorav Gupta, MD, PhD; Lisa Carey, MD, ScM, FASCO; and Chuck Perou, PhD) is synergistic with LCCC investments and NIH funded grants like the Breast Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE). Komen’s commitment to collaboration, investment in talent, and research continuity makes them a critical partner for breast cancer research at UNC.”
Media Contact: Brittany Phillips, Communications Specialist, UNC Health | UNC School of Medicine