We fund translational research to move knowledge as quickly as possible from basic discovery to treatment of patients.

Since 2002, LUNGevity has invested in 183 research projects at 69 institutions in 24 states and the District of Columbia focusing on early detection as well as more effective treatments of lung cancer.

Therapeutics Award

LUNGevity Foundation/The Cancer Institute at St. Joseph Medical Center Research Grant
Mark Jonathan Krasna, MD
The Cancer Institute, St. Joseph Medical Center, Towson, MD
Survivorship: Improving the recognition and treatment of psychosocial distress in lung cancer patients

Patients often face anxiety and distress following a lung cancer diagnosis. Dr. Krasna is studying how we can improve the recognition and treatment of psychosocial distress in lung cancer patients.


LUNGevity Foundation/Uniting Against Lung Cancer Research Grant
Mats Ljungman, PhD
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Regulation of Myc and micoRNA in small cell lung cancer

Small cell lung cancer cells produce high amounts of myc protein.  The myc protein makes cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy. Dr. Ljungman is investigating why small cell lung cancer makes high amounts of the myc protein and how this can be reversed.


American Lung Association/LUNGevity Foundation Discovery Award
Seyed Javad Moghaddam, MD
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Inflammation-Related Lung Cancer Prevention by Targeting the NF-kB Pathway

Dr. Moghaddam is investigating how airway inflammation can lead to lung cancer.  The factor NF-κβ is involved in both inflammation and carcinogenesis. Dr. Moghaddam’s hypothesis is that NF-κβ is a likely candidate for the promotion of lung cancer by inflammation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients.


National Lung Cancer Partnership/LUNGevity Foundation Research Grant
Mark W. Onaitis, MD
Duke University, Durham, NC
Analysis of Lung Adenocarcinoma Heterogeneity Based Upon Cell-of-Origin

The KRAS gene is the most common mutation in non-small cell lung cancer. Dr. Onaitis is studying how mutations of the KRAS gene affect different types of cells in the lungs and how these differences can be used to develop a targeted therapy that can lessen the effects of KRAS in lung cancer cells.


Funded equally by LUNGevity Foundation and the Illinois Chapter of the American Cancer Society
Sojin Shikano, PhD, DVM
University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, Chicago, IL
Identification of molecules regulating tumorigenic KCNK9 potassium channel

KCNK9 potassium channel activity is involved in the development of cancer, including lung cancers. Dr. Shikano is studying how this activity is regulated. An understanding of this process may lead to the development of a treatment that targets the channel activity.


LUNGevity Foundation/Partnership for Cures Research Grant
Erik J. Tryggestad, PhD
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
A Probabilistic Approach to High-Dose Lung IGRT

Dr. Tryggestad is developing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based methods to characterize breathing motion. This information can then be used for radiotherapy planning, delivery, and optimization for the treatment of lung cancer patients.


LUNGevity Foundation/The University of Kansas Cancer Center Research Grant
George A. Vielhauer, PhD
University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS
Novel C-terminal Hsp90I with isoform selectivity will function as selective anti-cancer agents in the treatment of lung cancers

HSP90, a heat shock protein, protects cancer cells from chemotherapy. Dr. Vielhauer’s laboratory is developing novel targeted therapy that selectively blocks HSP90 and kills lung cancer cells.


Funded equally by LUNGevity Foundation and The CHEST Foundation
Dennis A. Wigle, MD, PhD
Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Rochester, MN
Surgery versus SBRT for patients with lung cancer and limited pulmonary function

Dr. Wigle is investigating the effectiveness of stereotactic radiation therapy (SBRT) versus surgery in patients with compromised pulmonary function. This project is a phase II clinical trial whose results will set the stage for more-definitive phase III trials.


National Lung Cancer Partnership/LUNGevity Foundation Research Grant
May-Lin Wilgus, MD
Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY
Chromosome 7q copy number and lung adenocarcinoma invasion

A region in chromosome 7 has more copies than normal in patients with adenocarcinomas. Dr. Wilgus is determining whether these extra copies contribute to the development of lung cancer and how it can be targeted to lessen its effects.


National Lung Cancer Partnership/LUNGevity Foundation Research Grant
Sai Yendamuri, MD
State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
MiRNA expression profiling to predict recurrence after resection of stage I NSCLC

Dr. Yendamuri is conducting a clinical trial among stage-1 non-small cell lung cancer patients to confirm a microRNA signature for the prediction of the recurrence of lung cancer after surgery.  He then will develop a blood-based microRNA profile for the detection of lung cancer recurrence.


Funded equally by LUNGevity Foundation and the Thoracic Surgery Foundation
Sai Yendamuri, MD
State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
A microRNA profile to predict recurrence after surgical resection of stage I non-small cell lung cancer

Dr. Yendamuri is conducting a clinical trial among stage-1 non-small cell lung cancer patients to confirm a microRNA signature for the prediction of the recurrence of lung cancer after surgery. He then will develop a blood-based microRNA profile for the detection of lung cancer recurrence.


Early Detection Award

Funded by LUNGevity Foundation, A Breath of Hope Foundation, and Partnership for Cures
Jeffrey A. Borgia, PhD
Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL
Diagnostic Test Development for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Staging of Diagnosed Lung Cancer

Dr. Borgia has developed a blood test for identifying the presence of metastatic progression in non-small cell lung cancer. His current project allows for revision of the test to improve its accuracy and potentially reach an accuracy rate that will allow it to be useful as a stand-alone staging test.


Funded by LUNGevity Foundation and Partnership for Cures
Jeffrey A. Borgia, PhD
Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL
Diagnostic Test Development for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Early Detection of Lung Cancer

Dr. Borgia is working to develop new biomarkers to strengthen the capabilities of the existing blood test for identifying the presence of metastatic progress in non-small cell lung cancer that he has developed. He plans to adapt the blood test to a diagnostic card format so that high-risk individuals can put blood droplets on diagnostic cards at home and mail them to a test facility where the blood will be extracted and tested for the biomarkers in the panel.


Funded by LUNGevity Foundation and The CHEST Foundation
Scott L. Shofer, MD
Durham VA Medical Center Pulmonary Service, Durham, NC
Heterogeneity of Microarray-based Lung Cancer Signature in Patients with Lung Cancer

Dr. Shofer’s research builds on work of earlier investigators who developed a lung cancer risk signature based on genetic changes in lung cells in smokers. Dr. Shofer hypothesizes that the lung cancer risk signature model is an indicator of how lung cells change during the process of cancer development. Should his hypothesis be correct, the lung cancer risk signature could be established as a sensitive biomarker capable of diagnosing patients with lung cancer by checking cells taken from the throat using a swab.


Funded by LUNGevity Foundation and The CHEST Foundation
Christopher G. Slatore, MD, MS
University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA
The Association Between Incident Lung Cancer and Hormone Replacement Therapy in a Large Cohort

Previously conducted clinical trials have suggested an increased risk of lung cancer from hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Dr. Slatore is studying women who have both undergone HRT and smoked  to determine whether there is a relationship between HRT, tobacco use, and lung cancer.