Binaytara Precision Oncology Research Award

Alexander Salter, MD, PhD, of Stanford University, is the winner of the Binaytara Precision Oncology Research Award, presented at the 6th Binaytara Precision Oncology Summit on September 12, 2026. Dr. Salter received the $25,000 award for his proposal on a first-in-human phase I trial of drug-regulatable B7-H3 CAR T cells for advanced solid tumors.

To reach the Impact Pitch stage, Dr. Salter first had an abstract accepted for presentation at the summit, then submitted a separate research proposal for the award. His abstract, "First-in-Human Phase I Trial of Drug-Regulatable B7-H3 CAR T Cells for Advanced Solid Tumors," was published in the International Journal of Cancer Care and Delivery and co-authored with Allison Betof, MD, PhD, and Crystal Mackall, MD also from Stanford University.

The research targets B7-H3 (CD276), a protein highly expressed across many solid tumors. Dr. Salter's team developed a drug-regulatable CAR T-cell platform, called SNIP, that allows physicians to switch CAR T-cell activity on and off using an oral hepatitis C protease inhibitor, voxilaprevir. The approach is designed to preserve the antitumor activity of B7-H3 CAR T cells seen in earlier clinical work while giving clinicians a way to control treatment-related toxicity. The phase I dose-escalation trial, now underway at Stanford, will enroll adolescents and adults with relapsed or refractory B7-H3-positive high-grade sarcoma, ovarian cancer, non-small cell lung cancer and uveal melanoma.