$2.8M NCI-Funded Study on Physical Forces Driving Pancreatic Cancer Spread

Dr Jerome Irianto, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Sciences at the FSU College of Medicine, has been awarded a $2.8 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to investigate how physical and mechanical forces within cells drive pancreatic cancer progression. Utilizing human-derived 3D pancreatic organoids, the Irianto Lab explores how disruptions in ion transport cause structural pressure changes—specifically the collapse of the central lumen—which triggers force-sensitive proteins like YAP to drive tumor growth and metastasis. Leading a multidisciplinary team of engineers, biologists, and mathematical modelers, Dr. Irianto aims to uncover cellular vulnerabilities that could lead to new therapeutic strategies for treating pancreatic cancer.