Event

PhD Dissertation Defense Announcement: Kathryn McNaughton

Monday, July 20, 2026
3:00 p.m.
AJC 4104 (4th floor conference room)
Debbie Chu
301 405 8268
dgchu@umd.edu

Title: Engineering Photoimmunoconjugates and Light Delivery Methods for Locoregional Cancer Treatment

Committee members:
Dr. Huang Chiao Huang, Chair
Dr. Dana Roque
Dr. Giuliano Scarcelli
Dr. Nariman Nezami
Dr. Srinivasa Raghavan

Abstract: 
Frequent chemoresistance and metastasis in ovarian cancer present significant barriers to effective treatment. Typical disease presentation includes peritoneal dissemination, locoregional spread of cancer cells throughout the peritoneal cavity. The typical treatment regimen includes chemotherapy and tumor debulking surgery, but treatment efficacy is frequently undermined by the development of multidrug resistance (MDR) and residual disease following resection. The overexpression of the ABC transporter P-gp is a main contributor to MDR through chemotherapy efflux, conferring aggressive and recurrent disease. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) can overcome MDR by sensitizing cells to chemotherapy and is a promising approach for treating residual disease after surgical resection to improve patient outcomes and reduce recurrence. PDT is achieved through systemic delivery of a light-activatable drug (photosensitizer) and laser light to produce a cytotoxic effect, but it has two key limitations: systemic administration of photosensitizer leads to non-specific treatment, and delivery of light via an open surgical approach limits clinical applicability for minimally invasive surgery. Photoimmunotherapy (PIT) utilizes tumor-selective photoimmunoconjugates (antibody-photosensitizer conjugates), overcoming the limitation of targeted delivery, but is still limited by low uptake, requiring innovative strategies to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of light-activated therapy. This work uses the contrast agent Lipiodol to create a Lipiodol-based delivery platform for photoimmunoconjugates, enabling local injection for increased delivery and uptake. This strategy is demonstrated in transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) to locally deliver high doses of chemotherapy into tumor-feeding vessels for hepatic tumors. 

The overall goal of this dissertation is to advance the clinical compatibility of photoimmunoconjugate formulations and light-activation methods by targeted strategies for photoimmunotherapy delivery and activation for locoregional cancer therapy. This is achieved by 1) demonstrating PIT’s potential to overcome multidrug resistance, 2) establishing compatibility with a Lipiodol-based delivery platform, and 3) validating light delivery strategies, including balloon light applicators and minimally invasive delivery to the peritoneal cavity.