The Wisconsin Prostate Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) was awarded to UW Carbone Cancer Center in June 2023 by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), to support dedicated multi-disciplinary research in prostate cancer.
Led by David Jarrard, MD and Douglas McNeel, MD, PhD, the Prostate SPORE comprises three primary research projects, three supporting cores, and two annual pilot award programs. As a translational research initiative, the SPORE seeks to advance basic research into applied clinical settings (“bench to bedside”) — ultimately improving overall outcomes for patients with prostate cancer.
2026 Prostate SPORE Pilot Program Applications CLOSED
The Wisconsin Prostate Cancer SPORE grant includes two unique programs for investigators seeking to advance translational research on prostate cancer: the Career Enhancement Program (CEP) and the Developmental Research Program (DRP). [See "Pilot Award Programs" box below for program descriptions and awardees.] Selected candidates will receive up to $100k of funding over two years, along with networking and resource-sharing opportunities.
**As of March 27, we are no longer accepting CEP/DRP applications for the 2026-2027 award year. Thank you for your interest! We are now reviewing applications, and applicants will be notified of their status by May 1, 2026. Contact lweeth@wisc.edu with any questions.
RESEARCH PROJECTS
The UW Prostate Cancer SPORE has three primary research projects:
Project 1 – Tumor Microenvironment
Project 2 – Targeted Immunotherapy
Project 3 – Selective Treatment of Resistant Lesions
CORE RESOURCES
The SPORE also supports research with three expertise-specific Cores:
PILOT AWARD PROGRAMS
The Career Enhancement Program and Developmental Research Program fund innovative prostate cancer pilot research projects:
Publications
[2025]
Rastogi I, Mannone JA, Gibadullin R, Moseman JE, Sidney J, Sette A, McNeel DG, Gellman SH. β-amino acid substitution in the SIINFEKL antigen alters immunological recognition. Cancer Biol Ther. 2025 Dec;26(1):2486141. doi: 10.1080/15384047.2025.2486141. Epub 2025 Apr 8. PMID: 40200635; PMCID: PMC11988276.
Santoro-Fernandes V, Schott B, Weisman AJ, Lokre O, Cho SY, Perlman SB, Perk TG, Jeraj R. Full-Body Tumor Response Heterogeneity of Metastatic Neuroendocrine Tumor Patients Undergoing Peptide Receptor Radiopharmaceutical Therapy. J Nucl Med. 2025 Apr 1;66(4):565-571. doi: 10.2967/jnumed.124.267809. PMID: 39947917.
Hribernik N, Strasek K, Studen A, Zevnik K, Skalic K, Jeraj R, Rebersek M. Early-time-point 18F-FDG-PET/CT and other prognostic biomarkers of survival in metastatic melanoma patients receiving immunotherapy. Radiol Oncol. 2025 Feb 27;59(1):43-53. doi: 10.2478/raon-2025-0014. PMID: 40014787; PMCID: PMC11867565.
Sharifi MN, Feng E, Rydzewski NR, Taylor AK, Sperger JM, Shi Y, Helzer KT, Bootsma ML, Carreno V, Chang AH, Nunamaker LA, Blitzer GC, Shang TA, Subramanian A, Bjartell A, Josefsson A, Wikström P, Feng E, Kohli M, Yang R, Dehm SM, Small EJ, Aggarwal R, Quigley DA, Lang JM, Zhao SG, Sjöström M. Adverse prognosis gene expression patterns in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Mol Oncol. 2025 Feb 22. doi: 10.1002/1878-0261.70001. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39985777.
Dal Pra A, Ghadjar P, Ryu HM, Proudfoot JA, Hayoz S, Michalski JM, Spratt DE, Liu Y, Schär C, Berlin AM, Zwahlen DR, Simko JP, Hölscher T, Efstathiou JA, Polat B, Sandler HM, Hildebrandt G, Parliament MB, Mueller AC, Dayes IS, Plasswilm L, Correa RJM, Robertson JM, Karrison TG, Davicioni E, Hall WA, Feng FY, Pollack A, Thalmann GN, Nguyen PL, Aebersold DM, Tran PT, Zhao SG. Predicting dose response to prostate cancer radiotherapy: validation of a radiation signature in the randomized phase III NRG/RTOG 0126 and SAKK 09/10 trials. Ann Oncol. 2025 May;36(5):572-582. doi: 10.1016/j.annonc.2025.01.017. Epub 2025 Feb 13. PMID: 39986927; PMCID: PMC12034480.
Sharifi MN, Sperger JM, Taylor AK, Tippins KE, Reese SR, Carreno V, Kaufmann KR, Chang AH, Nunamaker LA, Linebarger C, Mora-Rodriguez L, Schehr JL, Krause HM, Helzer KT, Bootsma ML, Blitzer GC, Floberg JM, Kyriakopoulos CE, Emamekhoo H, Heath EI, Wells M, Tagawa ST, Sjöström M, Choudhury AD, Yu M, Armstrong AJ, Rathkopf DE, Beltran H, Nelson PS, Feng FY, Dehm SM, Kosoff D, Wei XX, McKay RR, Zhao SG, Lang JM. High-purity CTC RNA sequencing identifies prostate cancer lineage phenotypes prognostic for clinical outcomes. Cancer Discov. 2025 Feb 6. doi: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-24-1509. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39912912.
Invited Presentations
[2025]
- [April] – Glenn Liu presented his SPORE research (“Talazoparib Plus Enzalutamide Improves rPFS Regardless of AR Alteration Status in mCRPC”) at the 2025 AACR Annual Meeting in Chicago.
- [March] – Dave Jarrard gave a keynote address, “Manipulating the androgen axis and new targets in oligometastatic prostate cancer” at the international meeting of the Korean Prostate Society in Seoul.
In the News
[2025]
SPORE leaders awarded $600k Wisconsin Partnership Program grant to investigate biological contributors to aggressive cancer and treatment resistance
This three-year project aims to address disparities in cancer outcomes by investigating the biology of cancers and the factors that contribute to aggressive cancers or lead to the development of treatment resistance. The research team, led by Dr. Joshua Lang (with Co-Investigators Dr. Earlise Ward and Dr. George Zhao) will introduce a minimally invasive liquid biopsy testing approach, which is essentially a blood draw, and utilize a new type of testing called fragmentomics to gather more information about a patient’s tumor and patterns of potential treatment resistance or cancer recurrence.
[2024]
SPORE investigators profiled on Fox47 News in campaign highlighting prostate cancer research at Carbone Cancer Center
Prostate cancer affects men all over the world, and cutting-edge research and clinical trials are happening right here in Madison. As part of Fox47’s effort to raise awareness and money to battle the disease during the month of “No Shave November,” the local news station is featuring interviews with SPORE researchers about challenges, successes, and innovations in their work on prostate cancer at UW-Madison.
Interview with Dr. Jarrard (11/6/24)
Interview with Dr. Lang (11/13/24)
Interview about Lang Lab Clinical Trial (11/20/24)
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