Tag Archives: professor

Potential link between breast cancer genes, salivary gland cancer — ScienceDaily

Although salivary gland cancer is rare, this retrospective study suggests it occurs 17 times more often in people with inherited mutations in genes called BRCA1 and BRCA2, than those in the general population. “Further study is needed to confirm this preliminary result, but I believe that a BRCA-positive patient with a lump in a salivary gland should have that lesion evaluated as soon as possible,” says co-author Theodoros Teknos, MD, professor and chair of otolaryngology, director of head and neck oncologic surgery, and the David E…

Live and let-7: microRNA plays surprising role in cell survival

Specifically, principal investigator Albert R. La Spada, MD, PhD, professor of cellular and molecular medicine, chief of the Division of Genetics in the Department of Pediatrics and associate director of the Institute for Genomic Medicine at UC San Diego, and colleagues found that a microRNA known as let-7 controls autophagy through the amino acid sensing pathway, which has emerged as the most potent activator of mTORC1 complex activity. Autophagy is a fundamental process used by cells to degrade unnecessary components in times of starvation, releasing energy stores that help promote cell survival…

New at-risk group identified for gastrointestinal stromal tumors

“Previous journal articles never clearly differentiated GIST from several other tumors, even though they have different biologies,” said Jason Sicklick, MD, assistant professor of surgery and a surgical oncologist at UC San Diego Health System. “This study more clearly identifies at-risk populations in the United States as well as incidence rates, survival trends and risk factors for the disease.” Prior to 2001, GIST-specific histology codes were not used in medical coding, which meant that a variety of tumor types, such as leiomyoma and leiomyosarcoma, spindle cell, myofibroblastic, desmoid and KIT-positive metastatic melanomas were all lumped into one category. Sicklick and his team have used a new generation of precise pathologic diagnostic codes to better define the incidence and distribution of GIST among different patient groups. The research team from UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center found that the overall incidence rate was 6.8 cases per million people and that the rate rose from 2001 to 2011. …

Gene can predict aggressive prostate cancer at diagnosis — ScienceDaily

The results reported in the journal of Clinical Cancer Research, a publication of the American Association of Cancer Research, indicate the KLK3 gene — a gene on chromosome 19 responsible for encoding the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) — is not only associated with prostate cancer aggression, but a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) on it is more apparent in cancer patients with GS7. Researchers have linked Gleason score, an important predictor of prostate cancer outcomes, to several clinical end points, including clinical stage, cancer aggression and survival. …