Neuro-Oncology Translational Research Laboratory
Robert Bachoo, M.D., Ph.D., and his team in the Neuro-Oncology Translational Research Laboratory study primary brain tumors from pure basic science through the continuum to clinical trials.
Dr. Bachoo joined UT Southwestern Medical Center in January 2006 with his wife, Elizabeth Maher, M.D., Ph.D., co-PI of the laboratory, to co-lead a combined clinical and research program focused on gliomas.
Dr. Bachoo spearheaded the laboratory side while Dr. Maher focused on building the clinical program. Together, they wanted the newly formed Neuro-Oncology Translational Research Lab to be a place where experts in mouse models and basic scientific mechanisms could interact with clinicians focused on translating new genomic discoveries into imaging biomarkers.
Whether Ph.D. or M.D., graduate or medical student, summer intern student or career scientist, the idea behind the lab was to bring diverse points of view and training paths together to tackle one of the most intractable problems in cancer: glioblastoma (GBM).
This dreaded disease has publicly played out tragically for the late U.S. Senators Ted Kennedy and John McCain and has a median survival of 18 months with treatments that haven’t changed in more than 20 years. Despite many hundreds of clinical trials, one after the other have failed.
Yet, there is positivity and hope in the field. In 2024, the first drug ever for low-grade gliomas, the slow growing tumor precursor to GBM, a molecular targeted therapy for mutant Isocitrate Dehydrogenase (IDH1, 2) (Voranigo, Servier Pharmaceuticals), was developed de novo against mutant IDH and went from bench through five clinical trials to proof of its effect in a phase-3 international, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. The impressive prolongation of progression-free survival and time to next intervention in patients after surgery, the basis for FDA approval in August 2024, emphasizes the mantra of the Neuro-Oncology Translational Research Laboratory: “Follow the Science.”
The lab has an ongoing series of basic science and translational projects that together focus on mechanisms underlying GBM and low-grade glioma growth and resistance to treatment. By taking advantage of cutting-edge technology and expertise in neurology at the Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center at UT Southwestern and the broader scientific community at UT SW, progress is being made.
Dr. Bachoo encourages anyone who has an interest in brain tumors or wants to explore novel ideas using a variety of research tools, mouse models, or human tumor samples, to come and visit the lab and meet with the team. Located in the T. Boone Pickens Biomedical Building (ND3.300), the lab is always open to working together toward cure.