# Research Program - Experimental Therapeutics

> **NIH NIH P30** · GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $82,511

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
The overall mission of the Experimental Therapeutics Program (ET) is to reduce the burden of cancer through
preclinical and early clinical drug development; determine optimal treatment combinations and sequences;
identify prognostic, predictive and surrogate markers of efficacy and resistance for active agents and deliver best
practices to our catchment area and nationally through strategic collaborations. ET encompasses a combination
of preclinical, translational and clinical research, with strong ties to the other programs (Breast Cancer [BC],
Cancer Prevention and Control [CPC] and Molecular Oncology [MO]). Given its clinical focus, ET has evolved in
concert with recent trends and discoveries that have had an impact in the clinic, such as immunotherapy and
precision medicine. Aim 1 is focused on targeting known driver pathways of cancer. Aim 2 is focused on
targeting the tumor microenvironment (TME) and the immune system. Aim 3 is focused on developing drugs and
biomarkers for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. Significant accomplishments include completing an
investigator-initiated trial (IIT) demonstrating the efficacy of pembrolizumab in thymic carcinoma that is shifting
the treatment paradigm and work demonstrating the molecular determinants of immune resistance that are
identifying new targets for immunotherapy. ET is led by Giuseppe Giaccone, MD, PhD, former Chief of the
National Cancer Institute (NCI) Oncology Branch and a leading expert in lung cancer and experimental
therapeutics, and Anton Wellstein, MD, PhD, a pharmacologist whose translational research is focused on tumor
stromal interactions and mechanisms of cancer progression to metastasis. The LCCC Consortium is comprised
of Georgetown Comprehensive Cancer Center, based in Washington, DC (LCCC-DC) and the John Theurer
Cancer Center of Hackensack Meridian Health, based in Hackensack, NJ (LCCC-NJ). Accordingly, the LCCC
catchment area is defined by the LCCC-DC and LCCC-NJ catchment areas. ET has 43 members, including
translational and clinical researchers, from six departments across the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center
(LCCC) consortium institutions. The program is funded by $17.81M ($15.84M LCCC-DC, $1.97M LCCC-NJ) in
research funding (annual direct costs) of which $1.3M ($0.98M LCCC-DC, $0.32M LCCC-NJ) is peer-reviewed
and $0.86M ($0.54M LCCC-DC, $0.32M LCCC-NJ) is NCI funded. ET members published 578 papers, of which
137 were high impact (impact factor [IF] ≥ 8); 15% interprogrammatic, 23% intraprogrammatic and 48% involving
external collaborations with other NCI-designated cancer centers. ET members use all nine LCCC Shared
Resources. ET addresses challenges in LCCC’s catchment areas in Washington DC and surrounding counties
(LCCC-DC) and Bergen County, New Jersey (LCCC-NJ) by focusing on diseases that are relatively
overrepresented, such as pancreatic cancer and lung cancer, and offering research-inspired cancer care to
patients, including underserved min...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10150786
- **Project number:** 5P30CA051008-28
- **Recipient organization:** GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Giuseppe Giaccone
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $82,511
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1997-08-15 → 2023-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10150786

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10150786, Research Program - Experimental Therapeutics (5P30CA051008-28). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10150786. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*