# Effect of Immune-Enhancing Nutrition on Radical Cystectomy Outcomes- MERIT extension

> **NIH NIH R37** · UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · $557,517

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Patients undergoing surgery to treat their bladder cancer experience persisting complications from their
surgery. A lower resistance to infection and muscle wasting are common complications from the surgery.
The radical cystectomy operation is not only extremely catabolic, but fraught with the highest complication rate
of all the urologic oncology surgeries performed. Improve immune function, enhanced healing and reduced
infections would offer significant benefit to bladder cancer. The overall goal of this project is to reduce post-
operative complications from the surgical treatment of advanced bladder cancer and to better understand
how specialized immunonutrition modulates the immune system to reduce infections and skeletal muscle
wasting. The objective of this project is to assess the effectiveness of SIM intake before and after RC
surgery compared to a calorie- and nitrogen-matched ONS to reduce post-operative complications. The
central hypothesis is that SIM will reduce post-operative complications by restraining the expansion of
MDSCs from RC surgery, preserving muscle, and reducing infections. This hypothesis has been formulated
on the basis of preliminary data produced in the applicants’ laboratories and practice. The rationale is that
surgery induces the expansion of immature immune cells called myeloid-derived suppressor cells, which
lower the resistance to infection and may contribute to muscle wasting. SIM intake restrains the expansion
of these cells, reduces infection rates, and appears to protect against overall complications and muscle
wasting. Guided by strong preliminary data, the hypothesis will be tested in three specific aims: 1) To
determine the impact of consuming SIM compared to ONS on post-operative complications from RC
surgery; 2) To determine the impact of consuming SIM compared to ONS on infections and skeletal muscle
wasting from RC surgery; 3) To evaluate the impact of consuming SIM compared to ONS for restraining
MDSCs, decreasing inflammation, and modulating the immune landscape, nutrient metabolism, or the
microbiome. The project is significant because there is currently no known means to prevent infections and
muscle-wasting after RC surgery. This innovative approach could transform clinical practice to reduce post-
operative complications, thereby diminishing the burden of bladder cancer surgery.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10900558
- **Project number:** 5R37CA218118-07
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Jill Reeves Hamilton-Reeves
- **Activity code:** R37 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $557,517
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-01 → 2026-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10900558

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10900558, Effect of Immune-Enhancing Nutrition on Radical Cystectomy Outcomes- MERIT extension (5R37CA218118-07). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10900558. Licensed CC0.

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