We are pleased to announce that Dr. Dawid Panek has received the prestigious LIDER grant, funded by the National Centre for Research and Development. His project, titled “Development of selective CDK2/5 kinase inhibitors as an innovative approach in the search for effective and safe therapy for gliomas,” was among the 41 selected applications out of 392 submitted. Funding in the amount of PLN 1,725,765.00 was awarded for the research.

The project involves interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers from the Jagiellonian University Medical College, the Henryk Niewodniczański Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN), and Palacký University Olomouc. Its aim is to develop new chemical compounds that could represent a breakthrough in the therapy of gliomas – cancers of the central nervous system, particularly glioblastoma, which remains an incurable challenge for modern medicine.

Dr. Dawid Panek says about his project:

“Gliomas are ruthless adversaries – extremely aggressive cancers against which medicine still remains powerless. Glioblastoma, in particular, represents a diagnosis with virtually no chance of survival. We have taken up the challenge to change this and improve the fate and prognosis of patients, many of whom are defenseless children. My goal is to develop a therapy that not only halts the progression of the disease but also gives patients real hope for life and serves as a more effective adjunct to surgical treatment and radiotherapy. In our preliminary studies, we have developed novel cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors, precisely targeting the CDK2 and CDK5 enzymes – key drivers in glioma development. Our in vitro results speak for themselves: our compounds effectively eliminate the most aggressive cancer cells while sparing healthy tissues. We believe this represents an opportunity for a real breakthrough. We really hope that the future for glioma patients can look completely different, and we will certainly give 110% to make this happen.”