Identifying Diagnostic and Therapeutic Targets for Splenic Hemangiosarcoma

THE PROBLEM: Ligand-based targeted therapies use the concept that each cancer has a unique fingerprint. Structures primarily found in the disease of interest and not occurring in surrounding normal tissue can deliver drugs, immune cells, or dyes directly into the tumor. This allows a more effective cancer treatment with less side effects. However, researchers have not thoroughly investigated ligand-based targeted treatments in dogs with hemangiosarcoma, partly due to a limited understanding of the fingerprint and potential therapy targets of this aggressive canine cancer.

THE PROJECT: To fill this knowledge gap, researchers will use a microscope and laser to cut out cancerous hemangiosarcoma tissue and surrounding normal tissue precisely for subsequent analysis from dogs undergoing surgery for hemangiosarcoma of the spleen. The team will analyze these sections to unveil unique changes in the transcript (RNA) and protein signature (Proteom) that could serve as potential targets for ligand-based therapies in dogs with HSA.

POTENTIAL IMPACT: The team has successfully used this technique in other cancer types to detect promising targets. They hope their approach will also help identify novel tumor-specific targets to improve diagnosis, detection and treatment of HSA in dogs.