LCRF/Bayer Research Award on Innovative Therapeutic Strategies to Treat Lung Cancers with HER2 Mutations

Funding over two years to support research investigating the science behind HER2 alterations as oncogenic drivers of malignancy in lung cancers and/or the development of novel therapeutic approaches for patients with tumours harbouring HER2 mutations and/or other HER2 alterations.

The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) is a US-based non-profit organisation that focuses on research to improve the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure of lung cancer.

For the 2025 round its research grants programme, the foundation is partnering with Bayer to fund the LCRF/Bayer Research Award on Innovative Therapeutic Strategies to Treat Lung Cancers Harboring HER2 Mutations and/or Other HER2 Alterations.

This grant offers up to $500,000 over two years to fund a programme of basic and/or translational research, associated with a clinical trial, to investigate the science behind HER2 alterations as oncogenic drivers of malignancy and/or the development of novel therapeutic approaches for patients with tumours harbouring HER2 mutations and/or other HER2 alterations.

While there have been significant advances in the molecular profiling of tumours and the development of targeted therapies (including accelerated clinical trials and FDA approvals) for non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) over the past ten to fifteen years, available treatments are generally not curative and are prone to developing resistance.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations associated with the HER family of tyrosine kinases, including HER2, were one of the first oncogenic drivers that were successfully targeted with the use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors. HER2 mutations have been identified as potential oncogenic drivers in lung cancer, occurring in up to 4% of NSCLC.

To date, immunotherapeutic strategies have not been successful in the treatment of lung cancers with EGFR or HER2 mutations, and many therapeutic options are not curative. Accordingly, LCRF is seeking to develop a better understanding of the mechanisms of tumour response and resistance and investigate novel approaches to treat HER2-mutant lung cancers.

Work supported through this funding mechanism will address important mechanistic questions and developmental therapeutics across the care continuum and have the potential to increase survivorship. Given the specific interest in the development of novel therapies for this group of patients, it is preferred that a clinical trial be associated with or planned as a result of the findings of the project. It is also expected that a programme of correlative, translational research will be proposed that will enhance the understanding of these oncogenic-driven lung cancers.

Applications on a wide variety of topics related to HER2 alterations and lung cancer are encouraged:

• The proposal must be associated with a clinical trial, either ongoing or planned as a result of the project:
  • The trial can investigate novel treatment approaches, new therapies (ie next generation drugs or agents with novel mechanisms of action), and novel combinations.
  • Therapy can include targeted agents (TKIs), antibody-drug conjugates, immunotherapies, cell therapies etc, if there is a reasonably strong rationale supporting the investigation.
• The proposal must have a programme of basic and/or translational work associated with the clinical trial:
  • Topics of interest can include but are not limited to mechanisms of primary or secondary resistance, studies on the immune landscape and tumour microenvironment, biology and mechanisms of tumour progression, identification of biomarkers to predict sensitivity to specific therapies, methods for optimising treatment (efficacy and/or tolerability), etc.