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BIDDEFORD, Maine

Maine Cancer Foundation awards Professor Edward Bilsky grant to study bone cancer pain

Edward Bilsky, Ph.D., an associate professor of pharmacology in UNE’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, has received an $82,000 grant from the Maine Cancer Foundation to study the effects of delta opioid receptor (DOR) agonists in bone cancer pain.

Over a million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. alone this year.  Approximately 30-50% of all cancer patients will experience pain, and over 80% of patients with advanced cancer will experience substantial, life altering pain.  Bone cancer pain is one of the more common and challenging symptoms associated with advanced cancer.  The pain occurs in both primary bone cancers (sarcoma or hematologic malignancies) and metastatic cancers.

Current treatments
Current treatments for bone cancer pain are limited due to lack of efficacy, side effects and/or difficulty in dosing and administration.  Bilsky‚Äôs previous research has provided a rationale for developing pharmacotherapies that target the delta opioid receptor in chronic pain. The research funded by the Maine Cancer Foundation will investigate the activity and side-effect profile of novel drugs that activate the DOR in a mouse model of bone cancer, with the ultimate goal of having better analgesics for bone cancer patients (as well as other cancer-related pain conditions).

Bilsky states, ‚ÄúThe commitment of non-profit organizations such as the Maine Cancer Foundation to fund early to mid-stage preclinical projects is critical to achieving the goals of translational research.  Through this project, we hope to extend the promising findings of researchers in the cancer and pain fields who have linked the delta opioid receptor to bone cancer biology and associated pain.  We will use our expertise in delta opioid receptor pharmacology to further develop novel molecules that could be especially effective against the severe pain associated with bone cancer.  This class of agents is also expected to have a more favorable side effect profile compared to morphine or oxycodone, including less addiction liability and constipation.‚Äù

Ed Bilsky
Bilsky received his Ph.D. in pharmacology and toxicology from the University of Arizona in 1996.  After completion of an NIH post-doctoral fellowship, he became an assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of Northern Colorado and has been an associate professor of Pharmacology at UNE since 2001.  He has over 50 peer-reviewed publications in the fields of pain and addiction biology and receives funding from the National Institutes of Health and Office of Naval Research.

The University of New England has made significant progress in building research infrastructure and recruiting research active faculty over the past 10 years.  The neuroscience group has over seven NIH funded investigators who focus on pain and addiction-related projects.

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.