Unlocking Metabolic Vulnerabilities
To grow and survive, cancer cells reprogram how they use nutrients and produce energy. MCW Cancer Center investigators are studying these metabolic changes to identify the processes tumors rely on and the vulnerabilities those dependencies create.
Researchers look beyond cancer cells themselves to the surrounding tumor environment, studying how cells compete for nutrients, communicate with one another and adapt their metabolism in response to treatment.
Using metabolomics, bioenergetics and molecular imaging through the Translational Metabolomics Shared Resource, scientists can measure these changes and examine how tumor metabolism differs across cancers and throughout treatment.
This research is identifying metabolic signatures linked to cancer behavior, treatment response and resistance—and pathways that could provide new targets for therapy.
Seeing Cancer in Action
By providing a real-time view of cancer metabolism and other biological processes, PET-MR can help researchers identify tumor vulnerabilities, evaluate treatment response and connect laboratory discoveries with what is happening in patients.
Translational Metabolomics Shared Resource supports preclinical research and patient monitoring in clinical trials
MCW Cancer Center members have access to the Translational Metabolomics Shared Resource which combines expertise in mass spectrometry and bioenergetics, preclinical imaging, and clinical trial response assessment using artificial intelligence.
Black Patients with Bladder Cancer May Benefit from Mitochondria-Targeted Drugs
MCW Cancer Center scientists hope to obtain an investigational new drug status from the FDA and initiate clinical trials targeting mitochondrial metabolism that include patients with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.