The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation today announced a pivotal $850,000 investment in mesothelioma research, nearly tripling the Foundation’s research funding from the previous year. The funding includes three competitive research grants of $250,000 each to support innovative scientific investigations and a $100,000 grant to expand a first-of-its-kind multicenter clinical trial for malignant peritoneal mesothelioma.
The Foundation awarded $300,000 in research grants in 2025. This year’s unprecedented increase reflects its commitment to accelerating discoveries for one of the nation’s rarest and deadliest cancers, where research funding remains critically limited.
“We are thrilled to have increased funding for foundation-supported research grants this year,” said Cara Haymaker, PhD, Chair of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Board. “This infusion of financial support will result in higher impact studies driving research into mesothelioma pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies to improve patient outcomes.”
For people diagnosed with mesothelioma, research represents more than scientific progress; it represents hope. As a rare cancer, mesothelioma receives only a fraction of the research funding devoted to more common cancers, leaving many promising ideas without financial support. Philanthropic investments from the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation help bridge that gap by funding innovative projects, launching new scientific collaborations, and accelerating discoveries that improve treatment options and survival for patients.
2026 Research Grant Recipients
The Foundation awarded three competitive research grants of $250,000 each to support promising scientific investigations focused on advancing the understanding and treatment of mesothelioma. These grants are selected through a rigorous peer-reviewed process by mesothelioma physicians and researchers to keep the process fair, equitable, and without bias.
Combination TEAD-PRMT5 inhibitors as a curative treatment approach for 20% of mesothelioma
Dr. David Kwiatkowski – Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Many cancers are characterized by overactive mutated genes that force cells to multiply. Mesothelioma is defined by loss and mutation of protective genes that normally prevent cancer. MTAP and NF2 are two examples of genes that are frequently lost in mesothelioma.
MTAP is missing in about 30–40% of pleural mesotheliomas, creating a weakness that may be targeted with drugs called PRMT5 inhibitors. NF2 loss, which occurs in about 30–40% of mesotheliomas, can activate the YAP/TAZ/TEAD pathway, a signaling pathway that can help cancer cells grow and survive. This can be targeted with a class of drugs called TEAD inhibitors. This TEAD activity may also be present even when an NF2 mutation is not identified, which is why some TEAD inhibitor trials include mesothelioma patients without requiring a confirmed NF2 mutation or TEAD activation.
Both PRMT5 and TEAD inhibitors offer hope on their own for mesothelioma. However, only some patients respond, and responses may not last because cancer cells can become resistant. About one in five mesothelioma patients may have both MTAP loss and TEAD pathway activity.
Because drug combinations have often been more effective than single drugs in cancer treatment, this project will test whether pairing a PRMT5 inhibitor with a TEAD inhibitor can slow or stop tumor growth in this subgroup. The study will test the combination in mesothelioma cell lines, mouse models, and tumor samples collected from patients to better understand why some tumors respond or become resistant and to build the evidence needed for a future clinical trial.
MAP-MESO: Mapping Actionable Pathways to Identify Combination Therapies in Pleural MESOthelioma
Professor Sam Janes – University College London
For many people with pleural mesothelioma, standard treatment includes platinum/pemetrexed chemotherapy or nivolumab/ipilimumab immunotherapy. The challenge is that not all patients respond, and even when they do, the response may not last.
This project aims to identify genes and gene networks that help mesothelioma cells survive or resist current treatments, with the goal of finding drug targets that could be combined with available therapies.
Using a laboratory method called CRISPR screening, the research team will turn off more than 18,000 genes one at a time in mesothelioma cells collected from patients, then expose those cells to chemotherapy or immune-based treatment to see which gene changes make the cancer cells more sensitive or resistant to these treatments.
Both epithelioid and non-epithelioid pleural mesothelioma cells will be tested. After the most promising targets are identified, the team will test them in more advanced laboratory models, including 3D tumor models grown from patient samples that more closely reflect how mesothelioma behaves in the body, with later testing in mouse models if the findings support it.
The goal is to build the evidence needed to move the most promising combination approaches toward future clinical trials.
Identifying and Engineering Mesothelioma-Specific Vulnerabilities in the BMP Pathway
Dr. Munemasa Mori – Mayo Clinic
Normal mesothelial cells are specialized cells that form the thin lining around the lungs and other internal organs. These cells rely on BMP4, a protein signal that helps cells mature, to guide normal development.
In malignant pleural mesothelioma, this signal may be blocked by proteins called Gremlin 1 and BAMBI, which may prevent cancer cells from receiving the message to mature and stop growing. This can leave the cells in a more immature state, where they are more likely to keep growing.
This project explores a new approach called differentiation therapy, which aims to restore that maturation signal and push cancer cells toward a cell state where they may be less able to grow.
The study will look at whether mesothelioma cells (including epithelioid and sarcomatoid) still have a working BMP pathway and whether BMP patterns could help identify which tumors may be most likely to respond.
Two methods to restore BMP signaling mainly in tumor cells will be tested:
- Delivering BMP4 by targeting proteins on the outside of the cancer cell, such as mesothelin and podoplanin.
- Blocking the proteins Gremlin 1 and BAMBI.
The study will compare mesothelioma cells with normal mesothelial cells in laboratory models and patient tissue samples to determine whether this approach can affect tumor cells while limiting effects on normal cells.
If early results meet the study’s criteria, the work would move into mouse models and could also support future intrapleural delivery, where treatment is given directly into the pleural space near the tumor.
The goal of this study is to build evidence for a new treatment strategy, particularly for patients with mesothelioma subtypes that are more difficult to treat.
Expanding Access to a Critical Clinical Trial
In addition to the three investigator grants, the Foundation awarded $100,000 to the Mesothelioma Center at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to support the multi-institutional expansion of the investigator-initiated, philanthropically funded, randomized Phase II clinical trial, Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy After cytoReductive Surgery II (ICARuS II).
Led by Dr. Georgios Karagkounis, Dr. Garrett Nash, and Dr. Michael Offin, the trial seeks to answer a critical question in the treatment of malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPeM), an aggressive and understudied form of mesothelioma with few dedicated clinical trials.
While cytoreductive surgery (CRS) remains the cornerstone of treatment for MPeM, patients frequently experience microscopic residual disease which makes intraoperative treatments such as Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC) an important part of the perioperative treatment. Currently, it remains unknown whether intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IPC) or intravenous chemotherapy (IVC) provides the most effective postoperative treatment.
The ICARuS II trial was designed to answer that question. Patients with resectable malignant peritoneal mesothelioma undergo cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) before being randomized to receive platinum/pemetrexed through either intravenous chemotherapy(IVC) or normothermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (NIPEC). Beyond this objective, the ICARuS II trial’s goal is to create a system to build exact copies of patient tumors with complete genetic maps. Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPeM) research has long been stalled by a lack of models that accurately replicate the development of peritoneal tumors, having to default to pleural models. Through this study’s correlatives, they hope to discover why MPeM resists drugs and to identify new targeted therapies.
The study has successfully launched at Memorial Sloan Kettering and has already enrolled 9 of its target 60 patients. The Foundation’s funding will support the trial’s expansion beyond New York City. All Foundation funding will directly support enrollment of patients receiving care outside of Memorial Sloan Kettering.
Investing in Hope
Since its founding, the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation has remained committed to funding innovative research that advances understanding of mesothelioma while supporting patients and families affected by the disease. The Foundation’s research program has helped launch new scientific careers, foster collaboration among leading investigators, and accelerate discoveries that continue to shape the future of mesothelioma treatment.
This year’s record investment reflects the Foundation’s unwavering commitment to ensuring that promising research receives the support it needs and that patients benefit from new discoveries as quickly as possible.
About the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation
The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating mesothelioma and improving patient outcomes through research, education, patient support, advocacy, and community engagement. The Foundation funds high-impact research, connects patients and families with trusted resources, advocates for increased federal investment in mesothelioma research, and works to create a world where mesothelioma doesn’t limit lives.
