Arizona State University leading part of $142 million cancer research project

Arizona State University will take part in a $142 million research project to understand why cancer resists treatment.

Jun 4, 2025, 4:45 AM Updated: 11:42 am

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PHOENIX — Arizona State University is leading part of a $142 million research project to understand why cancer resists treatment.

Each year, two million Americans receive a cancer diagnosis and more than 600,000 end up with cancer that evades treatment, according to a Monday ASU announcement.

“Nearly everyone knows someone whose life has been affected by cancer,” executive vice president at ASU’s Knowledge of Enterprise Sally C. Morton said in the announcement.

“This is exactly the kind of innovative and important work ASU researchers are advancing for the public good. And this work underscores the incredible value of university research to the American people.”

Details on Arizona State University cancer research project

ASU is teaming up with top research institutions across the country, including Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of California San Diego and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

ASU is taking the lead in a particular piece of the project to learn how advanced computer models can be improved to help predict how cancer spreads and mutates.

The Sun Devil research team hopes to learn why cancer resists treatment while anticipating the next line of therapy for a patient.

Plans for the research project include using advanced computer models and tools, state-of-the-art medical testing and flexible clinical trials to improve treatment before cancerous tumors have mutated.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, which is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is funding the project to help personalize the detection of cancer and how to treat it.

Teams that meet the research goals may be eligible for further funding.

In the next 12 months, patients can enroll into clinical trials. Research data from the project will be public in order to involve the broader cancer research community.

“Our work will deliver predictive insights that help clinicians stay ahead of tumor evolution, target the molecular mechanisms of resistance and offer more effective, individualized treatment plans,” ASU principal investigator Kenneth Buetow said.

Earlier this year, ASU announced plans to build a downtown Phoenix medical campus in an effort to address the shortage of doctors in the state.