Q&A: Dr. Omar Abdel-Wahab, 2026 KCA Grant Winner

Dr. Omar Abdel-Wahab received the 2026 KCA Chromophobe Focus Award in partnership with the Chromophobe and Oncocytic Tumor Alliance for research to “Validate and Target a Novel Cell Surface Antigen for Treating Chromophobe Kidney Cancer”. Dr. Abdel-Wahab is Chair of SKI Molecular Pharmacology Program and an Attending Physician on the Leukemia Service in the Department of Medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. We spoke with him about his research and the impact it can have on people with kidney cancer.

Describe your project and how you developed the idea.

Our project is focused on targeting a cancer-specific cell surface protein that we have preliminarily identified as increased in expression on tumor cells from patients with chromophobe kidney cancer.  We discovered this by studying RNA sequencing data from patients with many forms of cancer looking for RNAs that are uniquely expressed in cancer. We specifically focus on RNAs that are uniquely “stitched together” (or spliced) in cancer compared to normal tissues. 

What is the most exciting thing about your research for patients and families?

This project has the potential to discover one of the first truly cancer specific immunotherapy targets for patients with chromophobe kidney cancer.  

What would a real breakthrough in chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (chRCC) treatment look like and where does your research fit into that goal?

We would love to discover treatments for patients that can effectively eliminate the cancer while having minimal side effects otherwise. This particular project are focused on developing immunotherapies such as antibodies or antibody-based treatments. 

What motivates you?

My scientific background is focused on understand how RNA is altered in its creation in cancer cells to result in new cancer-specific therapeutic targets. We discovered the therapeutic target that is the focus of this grant in patients with chromophobe kidney cancer serendipitously. I am therefore really excited about this project both because of its treatment potential for patients but also because the scientific novelty of this target. 

What else do you want others to know about you or your research?

I am very grateful for this opportunity from the Kidney Cancer Association as this is my first research project in the field of kidney cancers. I am excited that the organization has given me this chance and I hope we can contribute to this field.