# Inflammation and gynecologic cancer: the role of prostaglandins in ovarian cancer

> **NIH NIH K00** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2021 · $114,180

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 My ultimate goal is to become a leader in the field of cancer epidemiology who conducts innovative and
high-impact research on the etiology and prevention of gynecologic cancers. Ovarian cancer is the most fatal
gynecologic malignancy; despite advances in treatment, five-year survival is only 44%. The primary goal of my
dissertation research is to improve ovarian cancer prevention by understanding the role of inflammation and
immunity in ovarian tumor development, with a specific focus on prostaglandins. My research will leverage
longitudinal questionnaire, biomarker, and tissue data from the Nurses’ Health Studies to determine how
prediagnostic prostaglandin levels and long-term patterns of adult NSAID use are associated with risk of
ovarian cancer. First, I will determine whether prediagnostic levels of urinary prostaglandin metabolite PGE-M
are associated with risk of ovarian cancer. Second, using a lifecourse approach, I will evaluate the
relationships of premenopausal and postmenopausal NSAID use with risk of ovarian cancer, considering
timing, frequency, and duration of use. Third, since ovarian cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease, my
proposed research will determine whether the association between NSAID use and risk of ovarian cancer
differs by tumor aggressiveness or by density of tumor-associated macrophages, which are stimulated by
prostaglandins. The results of this project will clarify if exposure to prostaglandins influences risk of ovarian
cancer, and will provide information on the timing, frequency and duration of NSAID use that is most likely to
be chemopreventive. As a postdoctoral fellow I will leverage my predoctoral training in the analysis of complex
epidemiologic exposure data, ovarian tumor pathology, and biomarker research, while expanding my research
to include the analysis of metabolomic and gene expression data. This training will allow me to better identify
novel biomarkers and pathways in cancer etiology. Further, I will broaden my research focus to include the
etiology of endometrial cancer. With this additional expertise, a growing network of collaborators, and training
in grant writing, I will be well prepared to develop an innovative, multidisciplinary research program in cancer
epidemiology.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10196979
- **Project number:** 5K00CA212222-06
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Mollie Elyse Barnard
- **Activity code:** K00 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $114,180
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-18 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10196979

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10196979, Inflammation and gynecologic cancer: the role of prostaglandins in ovarian cancer (5K00CA212222-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10196979. Licensed CC0.

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