The long-term goal of this proposal is to discover and develop small molecule drugs against Head and Neck Cancers (HNC). The focus is on drug candidates that target processes critical for repopulation after radiation treatment. The current proposal is to perform preliminary pharmacokinetics and toxicity studies and test the efficacy of a proprietary drug candidate on preclinical models of human HNC. Head and Neck Cancers remain hard to control even with surgery and high doses of radiation, both of which have devastating side effects. New drugs that enhance standard therapies by reducing resistance and preventing re-population after these treatments have the potential to improve clinical practices. Successful completion of this project will yield a drug candidate that can be carried into PD/ADME/toxicology analysis towards IND filing.
