UAB Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery Associate Professor Karin Hardiman, M.D., Ph.D., was granted a pre-R01 grant award of $160,000 for the next two years from the O'Neal Invests program, for her research entitled “Creation of BACE1 Polymersomes to Overcome Resistance in Rectal Cancer.”

O'Neal Invests, which is supported by the UAB O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, aims to promote excellence in cancer research areas such as basic, population, and translational science. The program supports novel, paradigm-shifting cancer research proposed by UAB faculty.

Hardiman has been a part of the UAB faculty since 2019. In addition to her clinical roles, she is a principal investigator of an NIH-funded lab, working on diverse colorectal diseases and cancers.

The objective of her research is to deliver chemotherapeutic drugs more efficiently, potentially reducing complications and side effects while making chemotherapy more effective for patients with resistant colon cancer.

“Dr. Hardiman is an exemplary researcher whose work will change how we treat colorectal cancers,” says Gastrointestinal Surgery Division Director Daniel Chu, M.D. MSPH, FASCRS. “We look forward to learning more from her studies and the impact they will have on cancer research and care.”

Written by: Julia Kasmirski