Counter Part of $25M Grant to Explore Origins of Cancer
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Christopher Counter (at right), PhD, associate director of Basic Research, DCI, chats with Scott Soderling, PhD, then chair of the Department of Cell Biology at a 2020 reception celebrating the establishment of the Duke/Leica Center of Excellence in Microscopy.
A Duke Cancer Institute researcher is a member of a group receiving the prestigious Cancer Grand Challenges Grant, providing $25 million over five years to investigate the origins of cancer.
The nine-member, international research team includes Christopher Counter, PhD, a professor in the Department of Pharmacology & Cancer Biology and associate director of Basic Research in the Duke Cancer Institute. The research collaboration, called PROMINENT, focuses on how normal cells harbor mutations, and what triggers these mutations to become malignant or remain benign.
Counter’s role in the research group will build on his current work in mice and other laboratory models to determine the effects of environmental, metabolic, inflammatory, and genetic stresses that cause dormant mutations to become cancerous.
“There have been major advances in treatments for cancer patients over the last few decades, many of which Duke and the Duke Cancer Institute have been at the forefront of,” Counter said. “What this grant will allow us to do is to now determine how cancer first originates, with the ultimate goal of identifying ways of preventing this terrible disease before it even gets out of the starting gate.”
Counter’s research exemplifies the mission of a new program at Duke Cancer Institute, Cancer Risk, Detection, and Interception. The program focuses on cancer epidemiology, exposures, genetics, novel biomarker identification, and risk assessment strategies to promote early intervention and avoid cancer progression.
Meira Epplein, PhD, co-leader of the Cancer Risk, Detection, and Interception Research Program at DCI.
“We are thrilled that Chris Counter is an integral member of this major initiative to better understand early tumor development, which is truly on the cutting edge of cancer interception, seeking to prevent cancer just prior to its initiation,” said Meira Epplein, PhD, co-leader of the program.
Cancer Grand Challenges grants are awarded by Cancer Research UK and the National Cancer Institute in the US. The joint effort supports a global community of diverse, world-class research teams that work together, think differently, and take on cancer’s toughest challenges.
The PROMINENT Team
The PROMINENT study is led by principal investigators Allan Balmain (University of California, San Francisco), Paul Brennan (WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer, France) and Nuria Lopez-Bigas (Institute for Research in Biomedicine Barcelona, Spain), along with six co-investigators, including Counter, and 2 patient advocates.
Gayathri Devi, PhD, MS, is the recipient of this year’s Award for Addressing Health Equity Through Partnership and Innovation from the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS).“These award winners and their work represent the values and mission of ACTS for innovation, team science and community involvement applying principles of translational science,” said ACTS President Allan R. Brasier, MD.Devi received the award this week in the iconic International Ballroom of the historic Washington Hilton during the Translational Science 2025 meeting in Washington, D.C. The award recognizes investigators who translate their findings from bench to bedside to curbside."The Translational Science meeting is vital to the community because it provides opportunities to engage and learn about innovative, collaborative approaches to research, like those of Dr. Devi, which seek to improve health outcomes,” said ACTS Executive Director Kim Stelmaszak, CAE.Devi is a professor of surgery at the Duke School of Medicine and the program leader of the Duke Consortium for Inflammatory Breast Cancer. She received this award in recognition of the work conducted by the Rare 2 Care team. Rare 2 Care is a multidisciplinary, global partnership to develop innovative disease models, therapeutic strategies and community engaged research with providers and advocates to dismantle barriers to health care for patients with rare cancers.“Our team has made significant strides in addressing rare breast cancer care and health disparities, particularly in aggressive subtypes like triple-negative breast cancer and inflammatory breast cancer,” Devi said. “The initiative that started in 2015 has grown into a multifaceted rare cancer collective driven by the "Bench to Bedside to Curbside and Back" ethos, integrating clinical and laboratory findings with community-driven research. This holistic strategy ensures that scientific discoveries have real-world applications that benefit both patients and the broader community.”
A research study led by members of the Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment (NSOE) and the Duke Cancer Institute (DCI) aims to tackle the issue of cancer risk among firefighters based on their exposure to certain harmful chemicals.The North Carolina Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study (NC FFCCS), led by Heather Stapleton, PhD, the Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor of Environmental Health in the NSOE and a member of the DCI, launched in 2024 as part of the National Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study, which has partnered with fire service members across the country to recruit and track their exposure to hazardous chemicals over a 30-year period.The NC FFCCS has 305 participants currently enrolled and aims to recruit 1,000 firefighters across North Carolina by July 2026. Participants are contacted every two years for health updates.Firefighters are often exposed to combustion byproducts, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), flame retardants, and trace metals in the line of duty. NC FFCCS study team members work with participants to collect blood and urine samples, which are analyzed for contaminants and biological markers of cancer pathways. This analysis allows study team members to assess the impact these chemicals have on their cancer risk.“Firefighters often experience higher exposure to chemical carcinogens compared to people in other lines of work,” Stapleton said. “Our preliminary results indicate elevated exposures may contribute to multiple forms of cancer.”In addition to chemical exposures from fires themselves, firefighters could also be exposed to chemicals through their turnout gear and poor air quality in fire stations. The NC FFCCS team is examining this, as well as comparing participants’ blood PFAS levels to samples from communities with contaminated drinking water to see how their exposures compare.The North Carolina Collaboratory is sponsoring the study as it partners with academic institutions and government agencies to turn research into practical solutions for communities.“PFAS are a problem in many areas of North Carolina due to contaminated drinking water, particularly in areas that draw their water from the Cape Fear River,” Stapleton said. “Firefighters working and living in these areas receive exposure similar to the general population but could have additional exposures from the use of firefighting foams and personal protective equipment (PPE), which has historically been treated with PFAS. Our study hopes to understand if firefighter exposures are similar or different than the general public.”In the future, the study team plans to expand the use of wearable exposure devices to firefighters in North Carolina, along with wildland firefighters. They are also partnering with the New York Fire Department to study e-bike fire exposures. The North Carolina site continues to host recruitment events at fire departments, with several scheduled in High Point in March.“This study can provide firefighters better information about their individual risk for cancer,” Stapleton said. “These findings could lead to more comprehensive recommendations for reducing exposures, and thus cancer risks, in the fire service profession.”Visit the study website to learn more.(Photo courtesy of Mike Legeros)
Gayathri Devi, PhD, MS, is the recipient of this year’s Award for Addressing Health Equity Through Partnership and Innovation from the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS).“These award winners and their work represent the values and mission of ACTS for innovation, team science and community involvement applying principles of translational science,” said ACTS President Allan R. Brasier, MD.Devi received the award this week in the iconic International Ballroom of the historic Washington Hilton during the Translational Science 2025 meeting in Washington, D.C. The award recognizes investigators who translate their findings from bench to bedside to curbside."The Translational Science meeting is vital to the community because it provides opportunities to engage and learn about innovative, collaborative approaches to research, like those of Dr. Devi, which seek to improve health outcomes,” said ACTS Executive Director Kim Stelmaszak, CAE.Devi is a professor of surgery at the Duke School of Medicine and the program leader of the Duke Consortium for Inflammatory Breast Cancer. She received this award in recognition of the work conducted by the Rare 2 Care team. Rare 2 Care is a multidisciplinary, global partnership to develop innovative disease models, therapeutic strategies and community engaged research with providers and advocates to dismantle barriers to health care for patients with rare cancers.“Our team has made significant strides in addressing rare breast cancer care and health disparities, particularly in aggressive subtypes like triple-negative breast cancer and inflammatory breast cancer,” Devi said. “The initiative that started in 2015 has grown into a multifaceted rare cancer collective driven by the "Bench to Bedside to Curbside and Back" ethos, integrating clinical and laboratory findings with community-driven research. This holistic strategy ensures that scientific discoveries have real-world applications that benefit both patients and the broader community.”
A research study led by members of the Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment (NSOE) and the Duke Cancer Institute (DCI) aims to tackle the issue of cancer risk among firefighters based on their exposure to certain harmful chemicals.The North Carolina Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study (NC FFCCS), led by Heather Stapleton, PhD, the Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor of Environmental Health in the NSOE and a member of the DCI, launched in 2024 as part of the National Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study, which has partnered with fire service members across the country to recruit and track their exposure to hazardous chemicals over a 30-year period.The NC FFCCS has 305 participants currently enrolled and aims to recruit 1,000 firefighters across North Carolina by July 2026. Participants are contacted every two years for health updates.Firefighters are often exposed to combustion byproducts, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), flame retardants, and trace metals in the line of duty. NC FFCCS study team members work with participants to collect blood and urine samples, which are analyzed for contaminants and biological markers of cancer pathways. This analysis allows study team members to assess the impact these chemicals have on their cancer risk.“Firefighters often experience higher exposure to chemical carcinogens compared to people in other lines of work,” Stapleton said. “Our preliminary results indicate elevated exposures may contribute to multiple forms of cancer.”In addition to chemical exposures from fires themselves, firefighters could also be exposed to chemicals through their turnout gear and poor air quality in fire stations. The NC FFCCS team is examining this, as well as comparing participants’ blood PFAS levels to samples from communities with contaminated drinking water to see how their exposures compare.The North Carolina Collaboratory is sponsoring the study as it partners with academic institutions and government agencies to turn research into practical solutions for communities.“PFAS are a problem in many areas of North Carolina due to contaminated drinking water, particularly in areas that draw their water from the Cape Fear River,” Stapleton said. “Firefighters working and living in these areas receive exposure similar to the general population but could have additional exposures from the use of firefighting foams and personal protective equipment (PPE), which has historically been treated with PFAS. Our study hopes to understand if firefighter exposures are similar or different than the general public.”In the future, the study team plans to expand the use of wearable exposure devices to firefighters in North Carolina, along with wildland firefighters. They are also partnering with the New York Fire Department to study e-bike fire exposures. The North Carolina site continues to host recruitment events at fire departments, with several scheduled in High Point in March.“This study can provide firefighters better information about their individual risk for cancer,” Stapleton said. “These findings could lead to more comprehensive recommendations for reducing exposures, and thus cancer risks, in the fire service profession.”Visit the study website to learn more.(Photo courtesy of Mike Legeros)
