Ongoing research projects in my laboratory that I would like to highlight include:

NIH-NCI R01CA272766: The Rigor and Clinical Utility of PSMA Enriched Extracellular Vesicles for Prostate Cancer Detection
The goal of this project is to develop a urine test that is more specific for clinically significant prostate cancer than other any of the other currently available assays. Specifically, we will test the hypothesis that urinary exosomes and other extracellular vesicles (EVs) obtained by enrichment with antibodies specific PSMA will be a source of RNA markers that can substantially enhance prostate cancer risk assessment.
Gaston, Punnen and Pollack, Co-Principal Investigators

NIH-NCI U01CA271400: Prostate Needle Biopsies: Impact of Preanalytical Procurement and Processing Variables on the Detection of Gene Expression Signatures of Prostate Cancer Aggressiveness
The goal of this project is to develop strategies to identify and manage pre-analytical variables that pre-analytical variables that may impact the rigor and reproducibility of biopsy based prostate cancer molecular biomarker analyses.
Gaston, Stoyanova and Pollack, Co-Principal Investigators

NIH-NCI U01CA239141: MRI Imaging and Biomarkers for Early Detection of Aggressive Prostate Cancer
The goal of this project is to evaluate and validate the integration of quantitative imaging features and blood biomarkers to better select patients for prostate biopsy based on MRI-targeted histopathologic and genomic information.
Gaston Role: Co-Investigator; Punnen, Stoyanova and Pollack co-PIs

Sylvester CCCC Tumor Biology Program Intra-Programmatic Cancer Research Grant: Targeting the Prostate Cancer Immuno-Microenvironment
This focus of this study is on associations between the PrCa immune microenvironment and genomic predictors of radiation sensitivity with an exploration of mpMRI imaging features that might be used to target and treat PrCa foci based on their immune characteristics.
Gaston and Stoyanova, Co-Principal Investigators

Sylvester CCCC Clinical Trial Acceleration Award: Plasma Exosome RNA Profiles in Prostate Cancer Patients Enrolled in Active Surveillance Trials as Predictors of Disease Progression
Our goal for this project is to determine if the novel plasma EV RNA biomarker signature of high risk PrCa that we identified in our pilot studies can also stratify MAST active surveillance patients based on tumor grade at baseline and/or based on disease progression vs no progression.
Gaston and Punnen: Co-Principal Investigators

National Cancer Institute Early Detection Research Network (EDRN)
EDRN Prostate MRI Biomarker Study and Reference Set Overall PI for EDRN multisite project: John Wei MD, University of Michigan
Project Goal: This EDRN multisite project seeks to evaluate the performance of a series of prostate cancer biomarkers in combination with mpMRI prostate imaging for prediction of cancer on prostate biopsy.
Gaston Role: Site Principal Investigator

Department of Defense Prostate Cancer Research Program Biomarkers in the Detection of Prostate Cancer in African Americans
This DOD PCRP Synergistic Idea Development Award focuses on the identification of biomarker profiles that are characteristic of aggressive prostate cancers in African Americans.
Gaston Role: Principal Investigator