Funding Agency:

National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (Grant No. 1R03 NS054906)

Total Project Period:

4/15/06 - 2/28/09

Total Project Award:

$146,270

Principal Investigator:

Glenn Gobbel, DVM, PhD

Co-Investigator:

Ajay Niranjan, MD

Project Summary:

The goal of this project is to further verify this phenomenon, to elucidate the underlying mechanisms, and to evaluate its implications for therapy using animal brain tumor models. The specific aims in support of this goal are:

1. to determine if previous brain irradiation enhances the implantation rate, growth, and mass effect of subsequent braom neoplasms by inhibiting immune activation or increasing the vascular permeability and
2. to establish whether previous brain irradiation reduces the responsiveness of tumors to later doses of radiation by reducing neovascularization and increasing brain tumor hypoxia.

By elucidating the effects of radiation of subsequent brain tumors, this project will allow for the development of therapies that reduce the incidence of recurrent neoplasms and improve the radioresponsiveness of such tumors.