Research
Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery has a robust research program to explore the cellular and molecular mechanisms of thoracic cancers. The department applies these discoveries to develop novel cancer prevention and treatment strategies.
Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery has a robust research program to explore the cellular and molecular mechanisms of thoracic cancers. The department applies these discoveries to develop novel cancer prevention and treatment strategies.
Clinical Relevant Tumor Model
Gene Therapy
Major research programs in the Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery department include identification of oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes important in lung cancer development and progression, development of techniques to alter oncogene and tumor suppressor gene expression, investigation of genetic events in premalignant lesions, development of efficient viral and nonviral vectors for gene delivery to cancer cells, and application of these systems in human gene therapy.
Jack A. Roth, professor and director of the W.M. Keck Center for Innovative Cancer Therapies at MD Anderson, was among the first to identify and characterize a number of tumor suppressor genes for lung cancer and discover a way to deliver them to cancer cells using nanoparticles.
Gene-based prevention and treatment strategies:
- Identification of Oncogenes and Tumor Suppressor Genes
- Techniques to Alter Oncogene and Tumor Suppressor Gene Expression
- Investigation of Genetic Events in Premalignant Lesions
- Development of Efficient Viral and Nonviral Vectors for Gene Delivery to Cancer Cells
The goal of our research is to develop drugs that can be more effective at killing cancer cells.
Jack A. Roth, M.D.
Lung SPORE
The department is a recipient of a National Cancer Institute Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in Lung Cancer grant jointly with The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. This program has major projects focused on molecular early detection, susceptibility genes and chemoprevention of lung cancer.
Novel Precision Medicine for Lung Cancer
The breakthrough discoveries in targeted therapy and immunotherapy have not only led to a new paradigm of biomarker-directed precision therapy but also greatly accelerated the development of novel anticancer drugs. We are now focusing on developing innovative combination therapies and predictive biomarkers for precision therapy of lung cancer by evaluating their efficacies in molecularly annotated PDX models. These studies will be pursued through collaborations with the investigators in NCI PDXNet and ETCTN Programs.