Research Database

Dr. Halmos is working on a way to increase the effectiveness of radiation and chemotherapy that could also lead to personalized non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treatments, especially for the third of all lung cancer patients with locally advanced lung cancer.

Dr. Jiang is identifying sputum biomarkers that could improve the process of detecting early-stage lung cancer by contributing to development of a non-invasive test that complements low-dose computed tomography (CT) scans and improves the accuracy of diagnosis.

Dr. Kozono is studying which genetic types of lung cancer are the most resistant to radiation, and which of these may be best treated with a combination of radiation and bortezomib, a drug already FDA-approved for another type of cancer.

Dr. Sequist will develop models that explain how NSCLC patients can acquire drug resistance to targeted therapies after a period of initial successful treatment, leading to the development of new treatments to help patients overcome the drug resistance.

Dr. Slack is studying the KRAS-variant, a recently discovered KRAS mutation found in over 20% of  NSCLC patients, which has been shown to predict a patient’s response to cancer treatment. His research aims to confirm the role of the KRAS-variant to direct cancer therapy for lung cancer patients and as a potential future target for therapy.

Dr. Tennis aims to identify biomarkers that signal whether a patient is likely to benefit from iloprost and pioglitazone, two drugs that have demonstrated promise in reducing NSCLC risk, and determine whether they work in a clinical trial setting.

Dr. Wistuba and his colleague Dr. Humam Kadara are identifying biomarkers that could ultimately lead to the fist test to detect small cell lung cancer in its earliest and most treatable stages.

Dr. Beane will characterize how RNA expression in normal airway epithelial cells is affected by the presence of precancerous lesions and identify changes that predict if the lesions will become malignant or return to normal. Identifying these key molecular changes will contribute to early detection and possible chemo-prevention of lung cancer in high risk patients.

Dr. Byers is building on her discovery that patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) have an overabundance of the protein PARP1, which helps repair damaged DNA in SCLC cell lines and tumors. She is using the data from a Phase II clinical trial to discover which patients are most likely to benefit from treatment that combines a PARP inhibitor drug with chemotherapy.

Dr. Hassanein is using 164 proteins found only in lung cancer patients to develop a method to test the patient’s blood for its own antibodies to these proteins. His goal is to use these proteins as biomarkers in a blood test that will find lung cancer in its earliest, most treatable stage.

Dr. Maher is working to improve on the accuracy and usability of tests that identify lung cancer patients who are likely to relapse. He is using next-generation sequencing techniques to develop a signature set of key genetic changes  and convert it to a clinical test that will be able to predict who is at high risk for relapse.

Dr. Nair is developing a blood test to help determine whether a pulmonary nodule seen on a PET-scan imaging screen is cancerous. The goal of this test, which will make use of circulating molecular biomarkers, is to accurately determine which patients are most likely to have lung cancer and, therefore, should have biopsies or surgery.

Not every nodule detected on a CT scan is malignant. However, an invasive biopsy is often needed to determine this. Dr. Jeffrey Borgia’s team has discovered that malignant and benign nodules produce different types of proteins in the blood. Based on this finding, they are developing a simple blood test to predict which nodules require follow-up.

Patients with stage I and II lung cancer usually undergo surgery to treat their cancer. Sometimes, the cancer comes back. Using chemotherapy with surgery can prevent the cancer’s return. Dr. Carbone is studying how we can identify which stage I and II patients may benefit from chemotherapy.

Metformin is an FDA-approved drug for the treatment of diabetes. Dr. Edward Gabrielson and his colleagues have found that a gene called LKB1 is altered in 40% of lung cancer patients. He is studying whether lung cancer cells with mutations in LKB1 are sensitive to metformin. His ultimate goal is to use an already-approved drug for the treatment of LKB1-positive lung cancers.

Targeted therapies have shown great promise. However, up to 40% of patients with lung cancer do not test positive for a known target. Dr. Rebecca Heist is studying this group of patients and using DNA sequencing technology to identify novel targets for treatment.

Cancer cells make chemicals that attract blood vessels. This process is known as angiogenesis. Drugs that inhibit angiogenesis are already being used to treat lung cancer patients. Unfortunately, not all patients respond to angiogenesis inhibitors. Dr. John Heymach is studying what determines whether a patient will respond.

Computed tomography (CT) has a high false-positive rate. Less than 5% of people with nodules found through CT actually have lung cancer. Cells from benign nodules differ from malignant ones in two ways: they have a normal number of chromosomes and they make the same proteins as normal lung cells. Dr. York Miller is taking advantage of these differences. His team is developing a sputum-based test to determine whether a nodule is malignant or benign. The test will help decide whether the nodule requires follow-up.

Biomarker-based tests that complement CT will make it easier to detect lung cancer early. These tests should also be useful for both high-risk (current and former smokers) and low-risk (never-smokers) populations. Dr. Suzanne Miyamoto and her team are studying different protein, fat, and sugar molecules made by lung cancer cells. These different molecules can also be found in the blood of lung cancer patients. Their ultimate goal is to develop a blood test for the early detection of lung cancer.

CT scans often detect the presence of a lung nodule. Most of these nodules are benign. Dr. Edward Patz and his colleagues have discovered 25 auto-antibodies (protein molecules) found in the blood of non-small cell lung cancer patients. They are developing a simple, blood-based test to confirm these findings in larger groups of these patients.