Dr. Zhenpeng Qin along with co-principal investigator (Co-PI), Dr. Robert Bachoo have been awarded $3,360,102 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for their study on Enabling the Therapeutic Delivery for Spinal Cord Glioma by Epidural Light-Guided Modulation of Blood-Spinal-Cord Barrier. This study addresses the challenges in brain and spinal tumor research, which delivers effective treatment for intramedullary spinal cord tumors (IMSTs), a rare form of cancer that is linked to severe health complications and limited survival.

The research from this study stresses that IMSTs are difficult to treat due to their aggressively growing nature and the protective blood-spinal cord barrier (BSCB), that helps block drugs from reaching the tumor. Traditional options such as surgery and radiation are limited in effectiveness and safety. To address this, Dr. Qin and Dr. Bachoo are developing a slightly aggressive technique that uses light carried through epidural light-delivery probes and nanomaterials to briefly open the blood-spinal cord barrier, which permits therapies to access the spinal cord tumor.

This study will assess this method in both small and huge animal models and intends to test the effectiveness of combining this technique with specific drugs, radiation, and immune-based therapies. The results from this study could lead to innovative, less aggressive treatment options for spinal cord tumors, significant advancements in cancer therapy and will contribute to the field of mechanical engineering.