# Defining an Integrated Allostatic Load Index with Immune and Tumor Microenvironment Factors

> **NIH NIH U54** · MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA · 2020 · $46,533

## Abstract

The goal of this MUSC TCC project is to develop more precise biomarkers of prostate cancer initiation and
progression, and determine how to treat and manage prostate cancer among minority men within the context
of their biological risk for poor outcomes and social, psychological, and physiological (i.e., allostatic load/AL)
stressors. This will be done using several new innovative experimental approaches directly on archived tissues
unique to MUSC, using a rich resource cohort of samples (n=570) representing approximately one third African
American (AA) subjects. Based on the epidemiology of prostate cancer among AA men (already described in
the proposal), considerable efforts have been made to promote early detection through screening with
prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing. Recently, however, screening guidelines have shifted from performance
of annual screening starting at age 50 to informed decision-making as new data have emerged about the
efficacy of PSA testing. As early detection plays a less prominent role in prostate cancer control, it becomes
even more important to identify biological pathways that are activated in the initiation and progression of
disease and develop more effective biomarkers for early detection. Several prior studies have shown that
there is a complex interplay between the tumor microenvironment and the immune system that contributes to
the development of more aggressive prostate cancer among AA men. However, biological processes
related to immune functioning operate within and are influenced by social contextual factors. Thus, identifying
biological mechanisms without understanding the ways in which they are associated with social determinants
is necessary, but not sufficient to long-term efforts to reduce racial disparities in prostate cancer outcomes
through early detection and clinical management of disease. An emerging hypothesis central to this application
about cancer health disparities is that social conditions and psychological responses to social stressors
influence biological processes that are important to the initiation and progression of cancer. In this project,
MUSC investigators will examine this hypothesis through a transdisciplinary study that defines the molecular
mechanisms involved in the initiation and progression of prostate cancer by evaluating the tumor
microenvironment interactions between the immune system, the tumor glycome, social determinants and AL.
These investigators will determine whether the combination of distinct tumor and stroma N-glycans in prostate
cancers of AA men promotes a more pro-tumor inflammatory/immune microenvironment. They will also
examine the relationship between these biological processes and social determinants that include isolation,
perceived stress, and chronic socioeconomic stressors. They hypothesize that a combination of stressinducing
social determinants, distinct N-glycans, impaired immune/inflammatory balance contributes to more
aggressive prostate ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9900599
- **Project number:** 5U54MD010706-05
- **Recipient organization:** MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
- **Principal Investigator:** RICHARD R. DRAKE
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $46,533
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9900599

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9900599, Defining an Integrated Allostatic Load Index with Immune and Tumor Microenvironment Factors (5U54MD010706-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9900599. Licensed CC0.

---

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