DISCOVERIES 07
Our research on the effects of gene damage have provided new insights gained from studying Fanconi-Anemia syndrome , where patients have genetic defects in their ability to repair their genes . These patients are at much greater risk of developing cancers , and our work is helping guide new ways to detect and treat cancers like bladder cancer . Our researchers have also revealed how a gene called RasGRP1 can drive the formation and growth of some skin cancers and how prolonged inflammation ( for example , of the mesothelium or lining surrounding the lungs ) can lead to cancers like mesothelioma through unusually high activity of proteins like HMGB1 .
We were among the first to investigate and discover that cell-to-cell communication can contribute to cancer progression through involvement of proteins called GAP junctions . Over the years our cancer biologists have found specific roles for proteins involved in gene expression like STAT3 and developed powerful new drug leads to target it . These are finding their way through pre-clinical development now and may form new treatment options for breast and other cancers in the future .
Metastasis causes most cancer deaths from solid tumors . Our researchers have identified that a protein called RSK is part of the organizing engine that drives metastasis and are actively working to find ways to stop it . This is being explored as a new therapeutic approach to treating highly invasive brain tumors . We have also revealed details of how cell adhesion ( interaction with other cells ) through proteins called integrins is altered in cancer cells that are moving and how this is controlled . This is essential to understanding the complex processes that lead to metastasis .
We have also discovered that sepsis , a potentially life-threatening condition in which the body ’ s immune system can cause damage to its own tissues , increases cancer death risk for Native Hawaiians . New discoveries concerning mechanisms of sepsis have brought new approaches to targeting it .
Our Natural Products program has examined plants , algae , and fungi from Hawai ‘ i and the Pacific Basin over the last several decades to discover drug leads with novel structures and mechanisms of action . In the 1990s , one of our research teams identified a natural product , cryptophycin , that was active against cancer and which eventually went into early ( Phase II ) clinical trials in patients . More recently , hirsutinolide , a compound found in ironweed , consumed as an herbal tea , has been shown in cellular assays to have significant activity against some cancers . These studies show the continued promise of natural products as new potential prevention and treatment therapies .
1974 |
Lawrence H . Piette , PhD , became first director of CRCH ( 1974-1985 ) & as Principal Investigator received the first three-year core support grant establishing CRCH as an NCI-designated Cancer Center ; CRCH continued to receive a series of core support grants through 1986 . |
1978 |
Cancer Information Service ( CIS ) phone line established as part of CRCH ’ s Cancer Control Program . |
1974 |
CRCH ’ s Clinical Sciences Program was established with Noboru Oishi , MD , as director & located in The Queen ’ s Medical Center .
CRCH awarded five-year NCI demonstration contract for community-based cancer control activities ; one of only six awarded nationwide .
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1979 |
New CRCH building on campus of The Queen ’ s Medical Center completed & dedicated with Nobel Laureate Linus Pauling as keynote speaker , increased capacity for interdisciplinary research & community identification . |