Cold Spring Harbor lab discovery shows promise for possible early treatment, prevention of pancreatic cancer
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have discovered a way to target proteins in human cells that lead to pancreatic tumors, findings that show promise toward early treatment and possible prevention of a disease with a high mortality rate.
Turning off the two proteins could help inhibit the development of pancreatic tumors, said Dr. David Tuveson, an oncologist and research scientist who is director of Cold Spring Harbor's Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Lab.
"FGFR2 and EGFR are like light switches on a wall. And what Claudia [Tonelli] has found, she turned out the lights on those two proteins," he said in a recent interview, referring to the main author of the study on the discovery. She was able to stop the development of cancer in the pancreas in mice and lab-grown versions of human pancreatic tissue, he said.
Tonelli, in an interview with Newsday, said, "This discovery is exciting. It's a starting point for progress and potentially may lead to new therapeutic options for pancreatic cancer patients."
Dr. Georgios Georgakis, a surgical oncologist at Stony Brook Medicine who operates on the pancreas, liver and bowel duct, said of the study: "This is great news ... It is giving us more information on how we can attack this deadly disease," noting that pancreatic cancer "is one of the most aggressive cancers."
He said the study showed how drugs already on the market can be used to inhibit the molecule that can trigger cancer in the pancreas. "Maybe in next two to three years we will see clinical trials that will hopefully have results," he said.
He praised the findings, saying, "This is solid data from a very respectful lab that had dedicated its life to pancreatic cancer research."
Linda Tantawi, CEO of the Lustgarten Foundation, which supports pancreatic cancer research, described pancreatic cancer as one that is often found late and is one of the most deadly, noting the 5-year survival rate was 13%.
"There's still a ways to go. But the mechanisms that [Tuveson] and his colleagues have discovered are very important," she said of the recent discovery.
According to a January news release from the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, the 13% survival rate has remained flat, and "diagnoses and deaths from pancreatic cancer are on the rise, with an estimated 67,440 Americans expected to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and an estimated 51,980 predicted to die from the disease this year."
It said pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths and was on track to becoming the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths.
The Cold Spring Harbor lab study was published April 2 in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. In an article on that association's website, Tonelli said, "Understanding the additional pathways that promote progression from a precancerous pancreatic lesion to a malignant tumor could help identify more viable treatment strategies," as well as preventing the cancer from developing at all.
Tuveson said medical doctors "are writing Claudia and me all the time now asking if they can start clinical trials ... Claudia's findings may have a big role in [inhibiting] the earliest form of pancreatic cancer" and may eventually help those at risk of developing the disease.
Tuveson said the research done at the lab "shows the importance of supporting basic cancer research in academic institutions in the United States."
He said the "substantial support" from the Lustgarten Foundation for the past 13 years has enabled the scientists "to go into areas of research that would be considered very risky and led to this discovery from Dr. Tonelli."
Tantawi said 27 years ago, when the foundation started, "almost no money was going into pancreatic research" and the survival rate was a mere 3%. "That's why all this research that Dr. Tuveson does in his lab is very important."
Dr. Daniel King, of Northwell Health, a medical oncologist and researcher specializing in the pancreas, said he was “fascinated by this research because one of the ways we are going to beat pancreatic cancer is if we can catch it earlier, and preventing it from becoming a major problem.”
He said Tonelli and the other researchers have “uncovered two genes that are already well known as cancer genes … that appear to be implicated in the tendency of these blemishes [in the body] to turn into cancer. If we can learn how to prevent that from happening by hitting the brakes on these pathways, we may be able to stop cancer formation.”
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have discovered a way to target proteins in human cells that lead to pancreatic tumors, findings that show promise toward early treatment and possible prevention of a disease with a high mortality rate.
Turning off the two proteins could help inhibit the development of pancreatic tumors, said Dr. David Tuveson, an oncologist and research scientist who is director of Cold Spring Harbor's Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Lab.
"FGFR2 and EGFR are like light switches on a wall. And what Claudia [Tonelli] has found, she turned out the lights on those two proteins," he said in a recent interview, referring to the main author of the study on the discovery. She was able to stop the development of cancer in the pancreas in mice and lab-grown versions of human pancreatic tissue, he said.
Tonelli, in an interview with Newsday, said, "This discovery is exciting. It's a starting point for progress and potentially may lead to new therapeutic options for pancreatic cancer patients."
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have discovered a way to target proteins in human cells that lead to pancreatic tumors.
- The findings show promise toward early treatment and possible prevention of a disease with a traditionally high mortality rate.
- Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths with a 5-year survival rate of 13%.
Dr. Georgios Georgakis, a surgical oncologist at Stony Brook Medicine who operates on the pancreas, liver and bowel duct, said of the study: "This is great news ... It is giving us more information on how we can attack this deadly disease," noting that pancreatic cancer "is one of the most aggressive cancers."
He said the study showed how drugs already on the market can be used to inhibit the molecule that can trigger cancer in the pancreas. "Maybe in next two to three years we will see clinical trials that will hopefully have results," he said.
He praised the findings, saying, "This is solid data from a very respectful lab that had dedicated its life to pancreatic cancer research."
Linda Tantawi, CEO of the Lustgarten Foundation, which supports pancreatic cancer research, described pancreatic cancer as one that is often found late and is one of the most deadly, noting the 5-year survival rate was 13%.
"There's still a ways to go. But the mechanisms that [Tuveson] and his colleagues have discovered are very important," she said of the recent discovery.
According to a January news release from the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, the 13% survival rate has remained flat, and "diagnoses and deaths from pancreatic cancer are on the rise, with an estimated 67,440 Americans expected to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and an estimated 51,980 predicted to die from the disease this year."
It said pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths and was on track to becoming the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths.
The Cold Spring Harbor lab study was published April 2 in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. In an article on that association's website, Tonelli said, "Understanding the additional pathways that promote progression from a precancerous pancreatic lesion to a malignant tumor could help identify more viable treatment strategies," as well as preventing the cancer from developing at all.
Tuveson said medical doctors "are writing Claudia and me all the time now asking if they can start clinical trials ... Claudia's findings may have a big role in [inhibiting] the earliest form of pancreatic cancer" and may eventually help those at risk of developing the disease.
Tuveson said the research done at the lab "shows the importance of supporting basic cancer research in academic institutions in the United States."
He said the "substantial support" from the Lustgarten Foundation for the past 13 years has enabled the scientists "to go into areas of research that would be considered very risky and led to this discovery from Dr. Tonelli."
Tantawi said 27 years ago, when the foundation started, "almost no money was going into pancreatic research" and the survival rate was a mere 3%. "That's why all this research that Dr. Tuveson does in his lab is very important."
Dr. Daniel King, of Northwell Health, a medical oncologist and researcher specializing in the pancreas, said he was “fascinated by this research because one of the ways we are going to beat pancreatic cancer is if we can catch it earlier, and preventing it from becoming a major problem.”
He said Tonelli and the other researchers have “uncovered two genes that are already well known as cancer genes … that appear to be implicated in the tendency of these blemishes [in the body] to turn into cancer. If we can learn how to prevent that from happening by hitting the brakes on these pathways, we may be able to stop cancer formation.”
SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Sayville flag football QB Olivia Moynihan On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Sayville flag football quarterback Olivia Moynihan, East Islip baseball's historic start and more.
Top Stories
SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Sayville flag football QB Olivia Moynihan On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Sayville flag football quarterback Olivia Moynihan, East Islip baseball's historic start and more.
Most Popular
