The UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center has been awarded $28 million by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H). The money will be used to develop a new clinical trial for breast cancer which has spread to other part of the body.

The trial, “Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium Evolutionary Clinical Trial for Novel Biomarker-Driven Therapies,” which researchers have shortened to “EVOLVE,” will adapt treatment plans in near real-time by analyzing changes in a patient’s cancer and matching it to the most promising therapy.

“This has the potential to be practice-changing,” said Bill Schaller, the Lineberger Center’s director of communications. “This trial could pave the way for a new, more dynamic approach to treatment.”

“Despite progress in treating breast cancer during the past 30 years, we still lack curative therapies for metastatic disease,” said Dr. Lisa Carey, the deputy director of clinical sciences at the Lineberger Center and the study’s lead investigator. “EVOLVE takes a different approach to clinical research by using real-time biomarker data to adapt treatment as a tumor changes.”

Up to 700 patients with metastatic breast cancer will be enrolled in the study.

Metastatic breast cancer is currently incurable. Between 15 and 20 percent of early-stage breast cancer cases will become metastatic, and only one in three people with metastatic breast cancer survive beyond five years.

“This trial will let us act earlier, modify treatment when resistance begins – not just when symptoms return,” Carey said, “and ultimately give patients more time, and better quality of life.”

EVOLVE is part of a $142 million ARPA-H program, known as the Advanced Analysis for Precision Cancer Therapy (ADAPT). The Lineberger trial is one of 10 projects which received funding through ADAPT.

 

Featured image via UNC Lineberger Cancer Center

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
Top Stories of 2023: Eric Montross' Cancer Fight Galvanizes the Community
To reflect on the year, Chapelboro.com is re-publishing some of the top stories that impacted and defined our community’s experience in 2023. These stories and topics affected Chapel Hill, Carrboro and the rest of our region. UNC men’s basketball alumnus Eric Montross was notable around the Chapel Hill community not just for his stature – […]
UNC Researchers Turn Skin Cells To Cancer-Killing Stem Cells
UNC pharmacy researchers have successfully turned skin cells into cancer-hunting stem cells that destroy brain tumors known as glioblastom. “Patients desperately need a better standard of care,” said Shawn Hingtgen, who led the study. The survival rate beyond two years is 30 percent because even when the brain tumor is removed, it is nearly impossible […]
UNC Baseball Drops Final Game of Weekend Series vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech
The Diamond Heels weren’t able to finish off a series sweep of No. 2 Georgia Tech in Chapel Hill Sunday, dropping the series finale 5-2 after winning Friday and Saturday. The Yellow Jackets led for nearly the entire game, striking quickly in the top of the first and then, after UNC tied it in the […]
Report: Former Providence Head Coach Kim English Will Not Join UNC Men's Basketball
Update: After initially reporting former Providence head coach Kim English would be joining Michael Malone’s staff in Chapel Hill, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Sunday that English has elected not to do so. According to reports by both Inside Carolina and ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the UNC men’s basketball program is hiring former Providence head coach Kim English […]
Overtime Winner Helps UNC Men's Lacrosse Escape No. 8 Virginia
Despite losing a four-goal lead in the final 5:28 of regulation, UNC found a winning goal in sudden-death overtime to beat No. 8 Virginia 16-15 in a thriller in Charlottesville Saturday. 🗣 HEELS WIN#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/Y9oX8zVRcf — UNC Men's Lacrosse (@UNCMensLacrosse) April 18, 2026 In a topsy-turvy game, the Tar Heels found themselves trailing […]
UNC Baseball Wins Series With Run-Rule Victory vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech
UNC just beat the No. 2 out of Georgia Tech. Owen Hull hit a second-inning grand slam to help spark the Diamond Heels to a 14-4 win against the second-ranked Yellow Jackets Saturday at Boshamer Stadium. The game ended after eight innings due to the 10-run rule. 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐃𝐄 🗣️ Heels run rule #️⃣2️⃣#GoHeels x […]
Tracking Which UNC Men's Basketball Players Have Entered the 2026 Transfer Portal
The NCAA men’s basketball transfer portal opened Tuesday, April 7, the day after the national championship game. Following UNC head coach Hubert Davis’ dismissal on March 24, several Tar Heels have entered their names into the portal and pursue other opportunities. Here’s a list of which players have either made announcements or are reported to […]
UNC Baseball Beats No. 2 Georgia Tech in 1st Game of High-Powered ACC Series
Home runs from Macon Winslow, Erik Paulsen and Colin Hynek helped the No. 3 Diamond Heels beat No. 2 Georgia Tech 5-2 in the first game of a critical three-game ACC series at Boshamer Stadium Friday night. The UNC win snaps the Yellow Jackets’ 13-game winning streak. 𝐖𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐂 😤#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/bk4eHjQjld — Carolina […]
UNC Women's Lacrosse Overcomes Early Deficit, Beats No. 19 Duke in Regular Season Finale
No. 1 UNC trailed 5-2 in the waning seconds of the first half but still beat No. 19 Duke going away Thursday night in Durham, winning 11-5 in the final game of the regular season. Carolina is inevitable 🐏 The Heels run off 8 straight goals and hold Duke scoreless in the second half to […]
UNC Women's Soccer to Play Exhibition Match August 28 in Ireland
More than one UNC football team will be making the journey to Ireland this August. The UNC women’s soccer team will play an exhibition match against Shelbourne FC Friday, August 28 in Dublin, the day before the Tar Heel football team faces TCU in the 2026 Aer Lingus College Football Classic. Luck of the Heels […]
›