Grant: Catalyst Grant: NWHRI: Innovation Fund - Biomedical Discovery Grants

Objective: Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death among women worldwide. A major challenge with ovarian cancer is that it does not allow for a "one-size-fits-all" approach to treatment because patients respond more favorably to some treatments and less favorably to others. However, we currently lack a reliable method for determining which patients will respond best to which treatment option. To address this gap, our team is seeking to develop a new model that would allow doctors to determine the most effective treatment option for each ovarian cancer patient before beginning treatment. Methods: Our proposed model will involve first removing a piece of cancerous tumour from the patient, growing the tumour outside of the body to generate what is referred to as an organoid. An organoid is similar to a cell that can grow outside of the body and mimics the original tumor it was created from in shape, structure, and genetic makeup. We will compare the characteristics of the organoid grown outside the body to the original tumor to determine how closely the they resemble one another. We also plan to treat the organoid with different drugs to determine which drug most effectively stops the cancer growth in the organoid from each patient. Previous Research: Our team has expertise growing organoids from ovarian cancer patients. Moreover, we have a unique opportunity to collect tumour samples from patients with advanced ovarian cancer in our high-volume cancer treatment center. Impact and Relevance to Cancer: Our research has the potential to transform ovarian cancer treatment. The analysis from our research will give us new insights as to reasons why some treatment works and why others do not. By taking the guesswork out of treatment decisions, our model would allow doctors to offer personalized treatments that are optimally suited to extend the life of each ovarian cancer patient.