Current cancer drugs most often do not distinguish between malignant cells and healthy cells thus leading to the many side effects seen during cancer chemotherapy. Dr. Peng’s group has designed patented cancer pro-drugs which are selectively activated by conditions that are unique to the tumor microenvironment. The catalyst grant received from the UWM research foundation will support the team of Prof. Peng and Arnold to evaluate these novel compounds.

Dr. Peng has already shown potent antitumor activity in mouse tumor studies, but recently observed even stronger synergistic effects with her compounds combined with high-dose vitamin C in triple-negative breast cancer cells, which provides a compelling rationale to further explore this in animal models. The MIDD under leadership of Prof Arnold will support the development of these drug candidates to bring them into the clinic soon.