Link Receives Prostate Cancer Research Grant

The funding will advance understanding of side effects associated with PARPi therapy, an emerging treatment for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Washington University physician-scientist Daniel C. Link, MD, will lead a study to improve treatment for prostate cancer patients by learning more about side effects associated with an emerging therapy. The treatment, poly ADP ribose polymerase inhibitors, or PARPi, has been shown to slow the growth of, and even shrink, tumors in patients with prostate cancer, including a more advanced form called metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

However, the treatment can also cause side effects such as anemia, a condition where the body doesn’t have enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen to body tissues. This can result in a patient feeling weak and tired or experiencing a loss of appetite. About one-quarter of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer report serious anemia after they start PARPi therapy, which is an oral drug.

Link and his team will use funding from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and Pfizer Global Medical Grants to better understand and mitigate the side effects so patients can continue the therapy as prescribed.

“This research is really about helping patients,” said Link, who is the Alan and Edith Wolff Endowed Professor and chief of the Division of Oncology at Washington University School of Medicine and deputy director of Siteman Cancer Center, based at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and the School of Medicine.

When the side effects are serious, doctors must adjust the dose of the medicine or even stop treatment temporarily.

“We want to figure out why these side effects happen and find solutions so people can keep getting the treatments they need without feeling so sick,” Link added.

His research study, titled “Impact of Germline BRCA1/2 Mutations on PARPi-Induced Anemia,” will focus on how certain inherited genetic mutations, called BRCA1 and BRCA2, might affect how patients experience these side effects. The goal is to find ways to manage or even prevent these issues so patients can stay on their treatments and feel better.

“The aim of this research is to advance our understanding and ability to reduce adverse effects from PARPi alone or in combination with other treatments for patients with prostate cancer,” said Crystal S. Denlinger, MD, chief executive officer of the NCCN.

“Congratulations to this remarkable investigator. This work will enhance our understanding of how to better care for individuals with prostate cancer.”

The research will take about two years to complete. Link’s work is especially important because more patients are starting to use PARPi, and doctors are now testing these medicines in combination with other drugs to treat earlier stages of prostate cancer.