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2024 Neil DeFeo – PCF Young Investigator Award

STEAP1-Targeted Immunotherapy in Prostate Cancer

Carissa Chu
University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)

Mentors: Felix Feng, MD; Peter Carroll, MD, MPH; David Oh, MD, PhD

Description:

  • The incidence of high-risk, localized prostate cancer is increasing and biochemical recurrence rates after radical prostatectomy remain unacceptably high. There are currently no available standard of care treatment options that can be given prior to surgery (neoadjuvant). 
  • STEAP-1 is a protein highly expressed on prostate cancer and a promising therapeutic target. The experimental STEAP-1 targeting immunotherapy Xaluritamig has shown promising response rates in patients with metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (mCPRC) who have progressed on all other available lines of therapy. 
  • Dr. Carissa Chu’s project will test the efficacy of Xaluritamig in a neoadjuvant setting and evaluate STEAP-1 biology in primary prostate cancer. 
  • Positive and negative regulators of STEAP1 expression in prostate cancer cells will be identified using CRISPR screens.
  • Immune infiltration and STEAP1 expression will be assessed in samples from patients with prostate cancer across the spectrum of disease.
  • Strategies to enhance efficacy of Xaluritamig by modulating STEAP1 expression will be investigated in pre-clinical models.
  • If successful, this project will evaluate the efficacy and mechanisms of action of the novel immunotherapy Xaluritamig, and improve understanding of tumor-immune interactions in localized prostate cancer. 

What this means to patients: STEAP1 is a promising target for prostate cancer therapy, and a novel STEAP1-targeted immunotherapy has shown promise in patients with metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (mCPRC). Dr. Chu’s project will evaluate the efficacy of STEAP1-targeted immunotherapy as a neoadjuvant treatment in patients with localized prostate cancer, and provide biological and mechanism of action insights into how to increase STEAP1 levels in prostate cancer and improve the efficacy of this treatment. This will enhance knowledge of immune-biology in prostate cancer and advance treatment strategies which may benefit patients across the prostate cancer disease spectrum.