North Chicago, Ill. – October 02, 2026 -- Saros Therapeutics has received its second Phase II award from the National Cancer Institute, worth approximately $2 million, to advance a nanoparticle-based cancer immunotherapy toward human clinical testing.
NCI funds second two-year award for nanoparticle immunotherapy
The two-year grant will support studies needed to move Saros' experimental therapy toward an Investigational New Drug (IND) application, the company said. Saros operates within Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science's (RFU) Helix 51 biomedical incubator in North Chicago, Illinois, which it joined earlier this year.
SMP nanoparticle system activates STING pathway to fight metastatic cancer
The company's SMP nanoparticle platform, research on which was published in the journal Science earlier this year, delivers therapeutic compounds directly to immune cells to trigger the STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) pathway. Activating STING prompts the immune system to target and eliminate cancerous tumors that evade standard treatments.
CEO Matt Britz said the formulation is designed to enhance immune activation, protect the drug in circulation, improve delivery into immune cells and enable intravenous administration for systemic treatment of metastatic disease. The platform targets cancers that do not respond well to current checkpoint inhibitors.
Saros expands footprint in RFU's Innovation and Research Park
With the new NCI funding, Saros plans to increase its research activities and expand its laboratory and office space within RFU's Innovation and Research Park. Janice Urban, PhD, RFU's interim executive vice president for research, called the NCI recognition "truly exciting" and said the university looks forward to Saros' progress toward an IND filing.
Saros is working toward filing its first IND application as a precursor to initiating human clinical trials.