PHILADELPHIA (May 10, 2019) — Joshua Meyer, MD, an associate professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center, recently received a grant from the Colorectal Cancer Alliance for a study on genomic alterations central to the development of colorectal cancer in younger adults. The two-year, $125,000 Chris4Life Grant comes from an Alliance program dedicated to researching colorectal cancer in younger patients.
Young onset refers to individuals who are diagnosed with colorectal cancer before age 50. Approximately 11 percent of all colorectal cancer diagnoses are young onset, and the proportion has been increasing in recent years.
“Colorectal cancer occurring in younger people differs from the disease that affects older patients in many ways that affect prognosis and success of treatment,” Meyer said. “We are also finding that standard therapies are less effective in young patients.”
The grant will support Meyer’s effort to accurately identify the genetic profile of the types of tumors arising in younger patients in order to enable the development of effective therapies specifically for young onset colorectal cancer. His research will lead to a better understanding of the molecular drivers of colorectal cancer in younger patients.
“For the first time, we will be able to thoroughly characterize young onset colorectal cancer, and identify novel targets for therapy,” he said.
Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in men and women.