| For more information, contact: Jerry Mastey Editor School of Dentistry (734) 615-1971 jmastey@umich.edu |
Colleen Newvine Information Officer University of Michigan News Service (734) 647-4411 cnewvine@umich.edu |
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Head and Neck Cancer Program Expands Research within
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Ann Arbor, MI — November 3, 2003 —A collaborative research program now underway between the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, the Medical School, and the Comprehensive Cancer Center has the potential to improve the lives of patients with oral and other head and neck cancers and eventually decrease the mortality rates associated with those cancers. An $8.5 million Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research is funding five separate research projects for five years. Projects range from molecular diagnostics to imaging and the biology of tumor progression. The SPORE grant also allows for novel research initiatives. “We will take what we learn in research laboratories and apply that knowledge to patients who come to us for treatment in our clinics,” said Dr. Thomas Carey, chair of the School’s Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology and a professor of otorhinolaryngology at the Medical School. Carey is co-director of the SPORE grant with Dr. Gregory Wolf, professor and chair of the Department of Otolaryngology. “The goal of this research is to improve the chances of survival for patients with oral and other head and neck cancers.” The current five-year survival rates for those with advanced oral and other head and neck cancers, Carey said range from 90 percent for patients with Stage 1 cancers to only to 20 to 30 percent for those with more advanced, or Stage 4, head and neck cancers. “Many patients are unaware of early-stage cancers and do not seek treatment until the tumor becomes symptomatic when it’s more advanced and less easy to cure,” he said. “We want to improve those survival rates by better understanding what happens at the molecular level and why some patients survive and others don’t.” Novel Research Initiatives The SPORE grant also provides funds for faculty to conduct pilot research programs. One $50,000 grant, awarded to Dr. Jacques Nor, associate professor at the School of Dentistry, seeks to understand how blood vessels grow (angiogenesis), how they contribute to the growth of oral cancers, and what might be done to arrest their development. Another $50,000 grant, to Dr. Nisha D’Silva, an assistant professor in the dental school’s Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology, will study rap1, a small protein highly expressed in oral cancers, for its effects in promoting growth of cancer cells. This protein also induces the secretion of factors that promote the growth of new blood vessels that provide nutrients to the cancer cells. Carey said the grants for pilot research programs will allow these investigators to generate the preliminary data that will lead to additional and much larger grants in the years ahead for even more extensive research in these fields. “An important goal of the SPORE grant,” he added, “is to translate these new discoveries into new treatments in clinics. We want these new ideas to be applied to save lives and improve a patient’s quality of life.” The Five Major Projects Each of the five main projects funded by the SPORE grant is led by a clinical investigator and researcher. All projects involve laboratory- and patient-based research.. Project 1 uses drug treatment to enhance the effects of radiation treatment on patients with head and neck cancers. Project 2 uses molecular markers to predict the response to chemotherapy and radiation treatments among patients with laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. It also tests the use of a new molecule (BL-193) developed at U-M to overcome resistance to conventional chemotherapeutic drugs. Project 3 uses dietary, smoking, and behavioral factors as well as molecule markers to examine a group of patients to determine the risks of recurrence or progression of their tumors. Project 4 examines the role of a secreted protein, galanin, and its receptors in tumor progression. Project 5 uses a novel drug developed at U-M to halt the development or formation of blood vessels that allow oral and other head and neck cancers to grow and spread. Dental School and Medical School Research Carey and D’Silva, co-principal investigators of Project 4, are focusing their research on genetic markers that are associated with aggressive tumor behavior in the head and neck. “If we can identify the specific markers that cause these lethal tumors, we hope to be able to employ suitably aggressive therapy to help these individuals,” he said. Carey said his research and D’Silva’s have pinpointed chromosome 18 as an important genetic marker. Segments of the chromosome are rearranged in certain tumors leading to a loss of a part of the chromosome. These lost segments encode genes, such as the galanin receptor, that help control cell growth. The lack of these genes can result in uncontrolled tumor proliferation which, in turn, diminishes the chances of long-term survival for patients with oral and other head and neck cancers. “Eventually, we would like to develop novel strategies that will regulate the physiology affected by the loss of this chromosome so we can improve patient outcomes,” he said. D’Silva, a board-certified oral and maxillofacial pathologist, is also the co-director of one of the SPORE’s projects, the tissue core, along with Dr. Mark Prince of the Department of Otolaryngology. They are supervising the development of a patient database and the collection, storage, and distribution of patient tissue and blood samples designed to gain a better understanding of the genetic and molecular mechanisms behind malignant tumor behavior. The University of Michigan School of Dentistry is one of the nation’s leading dental schools engaged in oral health care education, research, patient care, and community service. General dental care clinics and specialty clinics providing advanced treatment enable the School to offer dental services and programs to patients throughout Michigan. Classroom and clinic instruction prepare future dentists, dental specialists, and dental hygienists for practice in private offices, hospitals, academia, and public agencies. Research seeks to discover and apply new knowledge that can help patients worldwide. For more information about the School of Dentistry, visit the Web at http://www.dent.umich.edu. | |||