Dr. Alejandro Sanchez was awarded a seed grant through Huntsman Cancer Institute to study the complex relationship between body size and oncologic outcomes in renal cell carcinoma. The grant is titled “Biologic interrogation of sarcopenia in patients with renal cell carcinoma.” The first aim of this grant is to quantify body composition change after nephrectomy and assess how adverse post-operative changes (e.g., loss of muscle mass) are associated with overall- and cancer specific survival. The second aim of the grant aims to establish a prospective cohort of nephrectomy patients where quantitative assessment of muscle strength (e.g., handgrip strength) will be collected and a biospecimen repository of serum, tumor, peritumoral fat and muscle specimens will be collected to further interrogate the biologic mechanisms underlying the association of body size and outcomes in renal cell carcinoma.