Northwest Liver Research Program (NLRP)

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The burden of liver disease in the United States continues to climb as the hepatitis C and obesity/metabolic syndrome epidemics steadily grow. These and other chronic liver diseases predispose to liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma, or HCC), the death rate for which has risen dramatically over the last several decades. Furthermore, a large proportion of patients with colorectal and other cancers develops liver metastases at the time of diagnosis or during the course of their disease. These factors have driven the demand for the development of more treatment options that can benefit each and every patient.

The mission of the Northwest Liver Research Program (NLRP) is to advance the health of patients with liver diseases and tumors by promoting collaborative inter-disciplinary research throughout the Puget Sound region. NLRP's major areas of focus include:

  • Biomarker discovery

  • Tumor pathogenesis

  • Immune evasion and targeting

  • "Druggable" targets in HCC

  • Functional imaging

  • Antibody-based diagnostics and therapeutics

  • Clinical trials