Media & Press Release

A collaboration across disciplines yields a promising cancer-fighting drug and proves the power of united science

Oral cancer might not make headlines as often as other cancers, but for those diagnosed, it’s aggressive, can be disfiguring and often deadly.

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 30, 2025 – A UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry researcher and her pioneering biotechnology company partnered with the school to earn a prestigious $400,000 Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant from the National Institutes of Health to speed development of a breakthrough oral cancer drug.

But the properties of capsaicin could have a deeper significance. The relationship between pain and capsazepine, a synthetic version of the naturally occurring compound, was what led San Antonio researchers to study whether it could be used to combat oral and other types of cancer.

Novel agents have potential to break 40-year drought in oral cancer drug development SAN ANTONIO (June 3, 2019) ― Researchers at UT Health San Antonio have identified a potent new class of anti-cancer drugs that target oral cancer cells while leaving other cells unharmed. The new drug class also has shown promise in stopping other types of cancer.