News                                                                                "CC Browser"
                                                                              Monthly news bulletin for UCSD Faculty and Staff

October 8, 2008
Novel Lung Cancer Vaccine Trial Launched at Moores UCSD Cancer Center  

Oncologists at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in La Jolla are hoping to stave off the relentless march of advanced lung cancer by treating patients with a novel kind of cancer vaccine. While many vaccines attempt to pump up the immune system to fight off a cancer, the new vaccine, Lucanix, is genetically engineered to also trick the cancer into turning off its immune system-suppressing activities. (more)

September 24, 2008
Study Shows Radiation Device May Customize Therapy, Enable Some to Avoid More Lengthy Treatment

A study of the first approximately 100 patients who have received partial breast irradiation with a small, whisk-like, expandable device inserted inside the breast has shown that after one year, the device is effective at sparing nearby healthy tissue from the effects of radiation. The device, called SAVI™, is aimed at providing customized radiation therapy while minimizing exposure to healthy tissue around the breast after a woman has received a lumpectomy for early stage cancer. (more)

August 27, 2008
Variation of Normal Protein Could Be
Key to Resistance to Common Cancer Drug

Researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in La Jolla have found evidence explaining why a common chemotherapy drug, cisplatin, may not always work for every cancer patient. They have shown that when a variant version of a key protein that normally causes cell death is active, patients may be resistant to the cancer-killing drug. (more)

July 7, 2008
“Smart Bomb” Nanoparticle Strategy Impacts Metastasis

A new treatment strategy using molecular “smart bombs” to target metastasis with anti-cancer drugs leads to good results using significantly lower doses of toxic chemotherapy, with less collateral damage to surrounding tissue, according to a collaborative team of researchers at the University of California, San Diego.  By designing a “nanoparticle” drug delivery system, the UC San Diego team, led by Moores UCSD Cancer Center Director of Translational Research David Cheresh, Ph.D., has identified a way to target chemotherapy to achieve a profound impact on metastasis in pancreatic and kidney cancer in mice. (more)

June 27, 2008
CIRM Grants Awarded to Support Research by
Moores Cancer Center Researchers

Adding to the more than $19.8 million in funding that researchers at the University of California, San Diego have received to date from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), three grants were awarded today to the university's Moores Cancer Center researchers to fund new approaches to generating stem cell lines from human skin, and to fighting leukemia and Alzheimer's disease. (more)

June 10, 2008
Anti-estrogen Drug Therapy Reduces Risk of Invasive Breast Cancer in Older Women UC San Diego Researchers Lead International Effort

New analysis of a drug approved for osteoporosis prevention and treatment has provided definitive evidence that the medication is also effective as a breast cancer preventative for certain cancers. Women who took the drug raloxifene were less likely to develop invasive, estrogen-receptor (ER) positive breast cancer compared with women who did not take the drug. The results of the randomized controlled trial are published in the June 10 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. (more)

June 5, 2008
Moores UCSD Cancer Center
Study Links Vitamin D, Type 1 Diabetes
Global View Supports Concept of Using Vitamin D in Reducing Disease Risks

Sun exposure and vitamin D levels may play a strong role in risk of type 1 diabetes in children, according to new findings by researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine.  This association comes on the heels of similar research findings by this same group regarding vitamin D levels and several major cancers.(more)

May 21, 2008
Relief from Liver Disease with Minimally Invasive Surgery

At 66, Donald Fuhrman, a retired real estate broker and investor, looked like many men his age: enjoying world travel and in good health with just slightly high cholesterol. But appearances can be deceiving. A liver biopsy that showed that Fuhrman had a rare form of cancer that rapidly progresses to lethal stages. Through an advanced minimally-invasive procedure called laparoscopy, Andrew M. Lowy, M.D., chief of surgical oncology at Moores UCSD Cancer Center, completely removed the cancerous tumor without the need for a large 8-12 inch incision.
(more)

May 15, 2008
Global View Shows Link
Between Vitamin D Status, Breast Cancer

Using newly available data on worldwide cancer incidence, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine have shown a clear association between deficiency in exposure to sunlight, specifically ultraviolet B (UVB), and breast cancer. (more)

April 12, 2008
Annual Celebrity Chefs Cook Gala Nets $600,000
for Groundbreaking Research and Physician Recruitment
at the Moores UCSD Cancer Center

More than 400 guests gathered recently at the 27th annual Celebrity Chefs Cook Gala, netting over $600,000 to support pioneering research at the nationally renowned Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center.  The gala's Italian theme “Bella Notte,” or, “beautiful night,” set the tone for the evening. (more)

April 07, 2008
From Bench to Bedside in One Year: Stem Cell Research
Leads to Potential New Therapy for Rare Blood Disorder

A unique partnership between industry and academia has led to human clinical trials of a new drug for a rare class of blood diseases called myeloproliferative disorders (MPD), which are all driven by the same genetic mutation and can evolve into leukemia.  In just one year, collaborative discoveries by stem cell researchers from the University of California, San Diego, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the Mayo Clinic and a San Diego pharmaceutical company, TargeGen, moved from identification of the most promising drug candidate to clinical trials for a new drug to fight this degenerative blood disorder, which affects more than 100,000 Americans. (more)

February 11, 2008
UCSD Research Team Identifies Novel Anti-Cancer Drug from the Sea

A collaborative team of researchers spearheaded by Dennis Carson M.D., professor of medicine and director of the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) has identified a potent new anti-cancer drug isolated from a toxic blue-green algae found in the South Pacific.  The properties of somocystinamide A (ScA) are described in a paper that will be published online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science the week of February 11-15.  (more)

February 11, 2008
Gene Therapy Activates Immune System in Patients with Leukemia

January 29, 2008
Institute of Medicine Report Highlights
UCSD Cancer Center Program

Cancer care today can save and prolong many lives, but often fails to address the psychological and social problems associated with the illness. A recently released report by the prestigious Institute of Medicine (IOM) proposes a new standard of care and showcases an innovative program at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) called “Patient and Family Support Services: The Science of Caring.” (more)

January 28, 2008
City of Hope Gives von Gunten Humanitarian Award

January 02, 2008
UCSD Researchers Find Young Adults More Likely to Quit Smoking Successfully

Young adults are more likely than older adults to quit smoking successfully, partly because they are more likely to make a serious effort to quit, say researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego. The study, “Smoking Cessation Rates in the United States: A Comparison of Young Adult and Older Smokers,” published in the Jan. 2, 2008 American Journal of Public Health also found that young adults, aged 18 to 24, are more likely to have tried to quit smoking than older adults, aged 50 to 64. (more)

December 04, 2007
UCSD Launches Vaccine Trial for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have failed chemotherapy or have chosen to forego chemotherapy have an opportunity to participate in a new clinical trial for a CLL vaccine being conducted at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD).

Study participants will receive Memgen's ISF35, an immune therapy product, or vaccine. Based on the results of previous studies, ISF35 has the potential to stimulate the immune system to act against CLL cells and fight them naturally. Memgen, a biomedical company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, licensed the technology for the ISF35 molecule from UCSD and continues clinical development of the molecule. (more)

October 22, 2007
Transparent Zebrafish Help Researchers Track Breast Cancer

What if doctors could peer through a patient's skin and see a cancer tumor growing?  They'd be able to study how tumor cells migrate: how they look, how they interact with the blood system to find nourishment to grow and spread through the body.  (more) 

Research conducted at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine has shed new light on the structure and function of one of the key proteins in all mammalian cells, protein kinase A (PKA), an enzyme which plays an essential role in memory formation, communication between nerve cells, and cardiac function. Discovery of this enzyme's molecular structure may help researchers to design drugs that specifically block the protein kinase activity involved in cancer or cardiac disease. (more)

September 19, 2007
Yang Awarded New Innovator Award

Jing Yang, Ph.D.

Jing Yang, Ph.D., an assistant professor of pharmacology and pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and member of the Moores Cancer Center, has been awarded a “New Innovator Award” by the NIH for her work to develop new approaches to studying how cancer cells metastasize to distant organs.   

August 28, 2007

August 23, 2007

Helpline Supporters Celebrate 15 years of Helping Smokers Quit
430,000 people… or an average of 80 people per day.  That's the number of people The California Smokers' Helpline has helped “kick the habit” in its 15 years of service. 

Diet and Exercise Key to Surviving Breast Cancer,
Regardless of Obesity, New UCSD Study Says 
Breast cancer survivors who eat a healthy diet and exercise moderately can reduce their risk of dying from breast cancer by half, regardless of their weight, suggests a new longitudinal study from the Moores Cancer Center. (more)

June 5, 2007

May 21, 2007

Cancer Center Offers SAVI Advanced Breast Cancer Treatment
The Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) is the first facility in California – and the second in the nation – to offer the SAVI applicator, an advanced treatment for breast cancer as part of breast conservation therapy. (more)

April 17, 2007                                                            

April 4, 2007

Smoking Cessation Rates Are Up, Cigarette Consumption Is Down,
Says UCSD Study of California's Tobacco Control Program
Since the advent of the California Tobacco Control Program, in 1989, the state's young adult smokers are quitting the habit in record numbers and older smokers are consuming far fewer cigarettes, according to a new series of studies from the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). (more)

April 3, 2007

Webster K. Cavenee First Recipient of
AACR's Princess Takamatsu Lectureship

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) will honor Webster K. Cavenee, Ph.D, as the first recipient of the Princess Takamatsu Memorial Lectureship at the 2007 Annual Meeting, to be held April 14-18 in Los Angeles, Calif. Cavenee is being recognized for his groundbreaking discoveries regarding the genetic mechanisms of predisposition to human cancer and his commitment to the international cancer community. (more)

March 22, 2007
Cancer Center Member Richard D. Kolodner Honored
with Landon-AACR Prize for Basic Cancer Research
This year's winner of the Kirk A. Landon-AACR Prize for Basic Cancer Research is Richard D. Kolodner, Ph.D., member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, and professor of medicine and member of the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. Kolodner is recognized for his fundamental discoveries in the field of DNA mismatch repair and its connection to human cancer. (more)

March 19, 2007

Inflammation May Play Role in Prostate Cancer Metastasis
Many would assume that “mounting an immune response” or “having your body fight the cancer” is a good thing.  Now, research at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine strongly suggests that inflammation associated with the progression of tumors actually plays a key role in the metastasis of prostate cancer. (more)

March 9, 2007

Prostate Cancer Foundation Awards
$100K to Cancer Center Researcher
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF), the world's largest philanthropic source of support for prostate cancer research, has granted Michael G. Rosenfeld, M.D., an internationally known and respected molecular biologist, a $100,000 award as part of the PCF's 2006 Competitive Awards Program. (more)

February 16, 2007                                                                                                                            

Members Receive Stem Cell Funding from CIRM
More than two years after voters approved a $3 billion program to fund stem cell research in California, the state has approved the first grants focused solely on human embryonic stem cell research.  Seven of those grants have been awarded to researchers at the UCSD, five of whom are members of the Cancer Center. (more)

February 13, 2007                                                                                                                            

Study Shows Liver an Excellent Target For
Cancer Gene Therapy Using Viral Vectors 

A featured paper in the February 14 issue of Nature Cancer Gene Therapy demonstrates that cancer cells in the liver are excellent targets for gene therapy using adenoviral vectors, based upon a fundamental new understanding of the differences between cancerous and normal liver cells. The findings signal a new way to treat cancers that have spread to the liver, such as metastatic cancers of the colon and breast. (more)

February 6, 2007

Two New Studies Back Vitamin D for Cancer Prevention
Researchers Report Levels Needed To Cut Breast, Colon Cancer Risk

Two new vitamin D studies using a sophisticated form of analysis called meta-analysis, in which data from multiple reports is combined, have revealed new prescriptions for possibly preventing up to half of the cases of breast cancer and two-thirds of the cases of colorectal cancer in the United States. (more)

January 25, 2007

Molecular Link between Inflammation and Cancer Discovered
A team led by biochemists at the University of California, San Diego has found what could be a long-elusive mechanism through which inflammation can promote cancer. The findings may provide a new approach for developing cancer therapies. (more)

January 17, 2007

2^nd Annual Albert Szent-Györgyi Prize
Awarded to Webster K. Cavenee, Ph.D.
The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) announced recently that Webster K. Cavenee, Ph.D., has been awarded the 2^nd Annual Albert Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research.  (more)

December 28, 2006

Researchers Identify New Drug Targets for Cancer 
Solving a 100-year-old genetic puzzle, researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have determined that the same genetic mechanism that drives tumor growth can also act as a tumor suppressor.  Their findings could lead to new drug targets for cancer therapies. (more)

December 20, 2006

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Publishes Cookbook and Nutrition Guide

Nutrition experts from the Moores UCSD Cancer Center have created a cookbook that is far more than just a compilation of healthy recipes. The book's three co-authors, all members of the Cancer Center's Cancer Prevention and Control Program, have expanded the cookbook concept to include helpful, easy-to-read informational guidelines about healthy eating and living. (more)

December 5, 2006

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Announces
Cancer Therapeutics Development Agreement

October 25, 2006                                                                   

Facts About Prostate Cancer and Its Treatment
By Ajay Sandhu, M.D.

In 2006, about 235,000 Americans will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, making it the most common cancer among males. If caught early, prostate cancer is very treatable and usually curable. (more)

Sept. 19, 2006                                                            

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Offers
Non-Invasive Neurosurgery for Brain Tumors
      Frameless stereotactic radiosurgery is planned and delivered in a single day

Carolyn Steele, 62, was at the dentist having her teeth cleaned when her right leg and foot began shaking uncontrollably.  The dental hygienist called paramedics, and minutes later, she was at the hospital, where clinicians suspected she had suffered a stroke.  As it turned out, she had lung cancer that had metastasized to the brain.  Two small tumors in her brain had caused a mild seizure on her right side. (more)

August 21, 2006

Decrease in Progression of Prostate Cancer
With Plant-based Diet and Stress Reduction
One out of six American men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their life, and more than a third of them will experience a recurrence after undergoing treatment, putting them at high risk to die of the disease. New research from the Moores Cancer Center and School of Medicine at University of California, San Diego suggests that diet changes, reinforced by stress management training, may be effective in slowing or halting the spread of the this deadly cancer. (more)

August 3, 2006

Nicholas J. Schork, Ph.D.

March 27, 2006
Moores UCSD Cancer Center
Creates Bioinformatics Center 

As new biomedical technologies emerge, medical research, particularly cancer-related research, is becoming more and more information intensive. To analyze and integrate massive amounts of complicated data so that it is useful to cancer patients and their physicians, the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego is creating a major center for bioinformatics.  

This initiative is designed to speed research by developing sophisticated new tools for storing, retrieving, analyzing and making sense of data, and, ultimately, to enhance clinical care by applying the resulting information. (more)

David Tarin, M.D., Ph.D.

February 16, 2006
UCSD Cancer Researchers Provide First Direct Evidence
Of 2-way Conversations Between Malignant, Normal Cells
For more than seven decades, scientists have had tantalizing clues that cancer cells and neighboring non-cancerous cells in the body communicate with one another. It now emerges that this dialog may explain the clinical observation that cancer cells grow to make secondary tumors (metastasize) in some organs of the body and not others. Findings published today suggest that this may also have therapeutic implications. (more)

David W. Rose, Ph.D.

February 10, 2006

Macrophage Signaling May Affect
Hormone Resistance in Prostate Tumors
Interaction between prostate cancer cells and immune cells called macrophages may be a source of inflammatory signals capable of impacting the effectiveness of androgen antagonists, the most common and effective treatment for prostate cancer, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and the Moores UCSD Cancer Center.  (more)

January 4, 2006
Cancer Researchers Describe Gene That Halts
Spread of Aggressive Childhood Cancer
    Findings confirm new ‘metastasis suppressor' gene

A team of cancer researchers has shown that a gene commonly lost during neuroblastoma tumor formation, one of the most aggressive cancers in babies and children, is in fact a “metastasis suppressor” gene. (more)

December 27, 2005
UCSD Researchers State Vitamin D Needed to Cut Cancer Risk
Taking 1,000 international units (IU) of vitamin D₃ daily appears to lower an individual's risk of developing certain cancers – including colon, breast, and ovarian cancer – by up to 50 percent, according to cancer prevention specialists at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Medical Center. The researchers call for prompt public health action to increase intake of vitamin D₃ as an inexpensive tool for prevention of diseases that claim millions of lives each year. (more)

November 18, 2005
Cancer Center Leader to Chair
ACS Statewide Wellness Team
The California Division of the American Cancer Society appointed Georgia Robins Sadler, Ph.D., as chair of its Wellness Team. As chair, Sadler will lead the team that provides strategic oversight and recommends policies and procedures for cancer prevention and risk reduction activities. (more)

November 7, 2005

Leukemia Society Awards Top Grant To
Moores UCSD Cancer Center ResearcherThe Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has awarded Thomas Kipps, M.D., Ph.D., Deputy Director of Research at the Moores UCSD Cancer Center, a $6.25 million, 5-year grant to develop new blood-cancer therapies. Kipps, an international authority on chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), is one of only four new Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) grant recipients named this year.  (more)

October 25, 2005

UCSD's Dennis Carson, M.D., Elected to Institute of Medicine
The Institute of Medicine of the National Academies has announced the election of Dennis A. Carson, M.D., to its membership. Carson is professor of medicine at UCSD School of Medicine and director of the Moores UCSD Cancer Center. He is one of 64 new members nationwide, and one of only two announced from San Diego. Paul Schimmel, Ph.D., at Scripps Research Institute was also elected. (more)


October 3, 2005

Thinking Big with the Very Small:
Focus of New Cancer Nanotechnology Center at UCSD
In a new national effort to fight cancer with “nanoscale” devices that find and destroy tumor cells while leaving healthy tissue unharmed, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) today awarded the University of California, San Diego $3.9 million in the first year of a five-year $20 million initiative to establish a Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence (CCNE). The UCSD center will use nanotechnology to develop anti-cancer therapies that directly target tumor cells; more accurate and faster diagnostics; and ways to track down cancer cells that survive therapy. (more)

September 10, 2005

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Invites
Community to Open House, Sept. 10
Have you operated a surgical robot, tasted food that may help prevent cancer, or heard about the newest findings in stopping cancer's spread? These activities and much, much more will be available at the newly opened Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center during a free, community open house from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, September 10. (more)

September 9, 2005                                                                 

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Launches
Dietary Study for Prostate Cancer Patients
Recent research indicates that what we eat may reduce the risk and course of prostate cancer. Building upon those earlier studies, researchers at the Moores UCSD Cancer Center are conducting a clinical trial of the impact of a vegetable-rich diet on prostate cancer.

“There is good evidence that diet plays an important role in health, but many studies have focused on dietary supplements or single nutrients,” said the project director Vicky Newman, M.S., R.D. “We are taking a whole-diet approach in this study, which we believe may carry additional benefit.” Newman is associate clinical professor of Family and Preventive Medicine, and director of nutrition services in the Cancer Center's Cancer Prevention and Control Program. (more)

August 18, 2005 

Twice as Many Adverts for Unhealthy Foods, Cigarettes
and Alcohol in Black and Latino Magazines
Magazines aimed at African-American and Hispanic women publish proportionally twice as many adverts for potentially health-damaging products, such as alcohol or junk food, as mainstream magazines aimed mainly at white women. (more)

July 20, 2005

Moores UCSD Cancer Center to Study Skin Sampling As
Non-invasive Test for Detecting Prostate Cancer
Researchers at the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center will conduct research for development of a skin test to detect prostate cancer and predict its progress, thanks to a $1.8 million grant from the University of California (UC) through its Industry-University Cooperative Research Program. These grants, called UC Discovery Grants, are designed to accelerate research with potential public benefits, and represent a three-way partnership between UC, the state of California and industry partners. (more)

July 15, 2005

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Study
Old Drug May Find New Use Against Side Effect of Cancer Treatment
Platinum-based drugs are commonly used in cancer therapy because they have proven effectiveness, but a potentially serious side effect can develop – peripheral neuropathy – for which currently there is no treatment.

Symptoms of platinum-induced peripheral neuropathy include numbness, tingling and pain in the extremities, and can range from moderately troublesome to debilitating. Some patients are confined to a wheelchair as a result of this side effect. (more)

July 8, 2005

Bing Ren, Ph.D.

Study Marks First Step in Decoding Gene Regulatory Logic
Investigators from the University California, San Diego (UCSD) Branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR) and NimbleGen Systems have developed an efficient method to identify thousands of regulatory sequences in the human genome, according to a study published today in Nature.

Genes are defined by their ability to generate a functional product. Thus the ‘promoter' - a DNA sequence that controls when and where a gene product is generated - is the critical element that distinguishes a gene from ‘junk DNA.' Using a set of NimbleGen's DNA microarrays that represent the entire human genome, the team was able to track critical proteins binding to each gene's promoter to identify 10,567 active promoters, 5,449 of which were previously unknown.

LICR's Dr. Bing Ren, the senior author of the study and a faculty member at the UCSD School of Medicine, says that although scientists have found most of the protein-coding genes in the human genome, their control sequences have been elusive until now. (more)

May 4, 2005

The UCSD honorees are Cancer Center members Shu Chien, professor of Bioengineering and Medicine and chair of the Department of Bioengineering, and Michael Karin, professor of Pharmacology. Also named from UCSD was Gary Cox, professor of Political Science and chair of the Department of Political Science. (more)

May 2, 2005                                                                    

Unexpected Lock and Key Mechanism Found For the Assembly of Tumor Blood Vessels A critical lock and key mechanism that allows the final step in the completion of new blood vessel formation has been identified by a University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine team in research that promises to lead to a new way to halt tumor growth by cutting off the tumor blood supply.

The research team led by Judith Varner, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine at UCSD and a member of the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center , made the surprising discovery that a receptor-ligand pair previously identified as key regulators of immune cell function puts the finishing touches on newly constructed blood vessels by allowing the two cell layers of blood vessels to recognize and “lock” together.

The study, which appears in the June 2005 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation , is the first to show how the two cell layers of blood vessels recognize and bind to each other during angiogenesis, which is the formation of new blood vessels. (more)

April 22, 2005

New Method Holds Promise in Identifying Markers of Non-metastatic Versus Highly Metastatic Breast Cancer
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego have used a new strategy to identify differences between non-metastatic and highly metastatic breast cancer cells. The article by Valerie Montel et al., “Expression profiling of primary tumors and matched lymphatic and lung metastases in a xenogeneic breast cancer model,” appears in the May 2005 issue of The American Journal of Pathology and is accompanied by a commentary.

The significance of the study's findings lies in how the microarray method was employed. Previous studies have examined the patterns of genes that are active in primary human tumors, but the genetic differences that exist between individual patients can make interpretation of such results difficult. The beauty of the Montel et al. study is the use of microarrays to analyze variations in gene activity between cancer cell lines with differing capability to spread to distant organs (metastasize) but derived from the same human breast cancer. This eliminates the problem of irrelevant genetic variability among tumors derived from different patients. (more)

March 31, 2005

Natural Tumor Suppressor in Body
Discovered by UCSD Medical Researchers

A natural tumor suppressor that could potentially be turned on in certain cancer cells to prevent the formation of tumors has been discovered by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. 

Located on chromosome 18 and called PH domain Leucine-rich repeat Protein Phosphatase (PHLPP, pronounced “flip”), the tumor suppressor is described in the April 1, 2005 issue of the journal Molecular Cell.   The scientists demonstrated that PHLPP deletes a phosphate molecule, causing termination of cell-growth signaling by a protein called Akt that controls the balance between cell growth leading to cancer and cell death that prevents tumor formation. (more)

March 30, 2005

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Dedication Ceremony Set For April 8

After eight years in planning and two years in construction, the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center building is set to open with the official ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for Friday, April 8. More than 300 guests are expected. Presiding over the event will be the director of the National Cancer Institute, Andrew von Eschenbach; University of California Regent and donor John Moores; UCSD Chancellor Marye Anne Fox; and others. 

At $105 million and 270,000 square feet, this is the largest project ever undertaken by the UCSD Health Sciences. The new building allows for the consolidation of the extensive clinical, research, education and community outreach programs of the Moores Cancer Center. The facility contains state-of-the-art clinical space that is also comfortable and welcoming for patients; modern laboratories to support research that advances prevention, diagnosis and treatment of malignancy; and areas dedicated to patient support and education – all core missions of the region’s only NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center. (more)

January 4, 2005                                                 

December 9, 2004

Cloned Gene from Sea Animal May
Prove Key in Cancer Drug Development
Researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, and their colleagues have taken a significant step forward in developing a new method to produce drug compounds with potential to treat various types of cancer.

In the current issue of the journal Chemistry and Biology, scientists at Scripps, the University of Minnesota and the Life Sciences Institute describe the development of "bryA," a gene that could help solve problems associated with the production of anticancer agents originally discovered in the marine invertebrate Bugula neritina.

"To be able to show that this gene really exists has been the Holy Grail for the last 10 years," said Scripps Professor Margo Haygood, a coauthor of the paper. "This takes us beyond just suspecting that a bacteria might be involved to actually having a gene that looks like the right thing." (more)


November 24, 2004                                                                     

Helping a Seriously Ill Loved One
Through the Holidays
Caring for a loved one with a serious disease can be both a deeply rewarding and stressful experience, especially during the holidays. Trying to make the holidays a special and happy time can be overwhelming for the family, and not necessarily what the ill relative wants, according to an expert in such matters at the University of California, San Diego.

“For the person coping with a serious illness, having some control over what happens around them can be a gift in itself,” said Matthew J. Loscalzo, MSW, director of patient and family support services at Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center.  “Trying too hard to make the person happy can add stress, not take it away. Caring and respectful communication is always the safest way to bring out the best in people.” (more)

November 18, 2004

New Clinical Trial for Patients with Brain Cancer
Available at Moores UCSD Cancer Center
Physicians at the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center are conducting a Phase III research study to evaluate an investigational drug for the treatment of progressive or recurrent glioblastoma multiforme, a malignant brain cancer. 

Participants will receive either two infusions of an investigational drug called TransMID, or a chemotherapy regimen considered to be the best standard of care. (more)

November 2, 2004

Oct. 20, 2004

Carol LeBeau to Emcee
UCSD Melanoma 5K Walk
Walkers of all ages and fitness levels are invited to join KGTV news anchor Carol LeBeau for the UCSD Melanoma 5K Walk for a Cure on November 6. The walk traverses the scenic UCSD campus in La Jolla and features the outdoor artwork of the Stuart Collection.

Sun God by Niki de Saint Phalle - Stuart Collection, UCSD

This family-oriented walk raises funds to support melanoma research, treatment and education at the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center. This year, event organizers have set a goal to raise $100,000.

The walk is organized by UCSD Cancer Center Foundation Board member Charles F. Gorder, Sr. as a tribute to the memory of his son, Bruce, who succumbed to melanoma at age 37.

“My son battled melanoma for years, but lost his fight in 1992, leaving behind his widow, Vicki, and his daughter, Gabrielle,” Gorder said. “His family, many friends and other supporters are committed to doing all that we can to help find the cure for melanoma. We hope others will join us in this cause.” (more)

Event Co-chairs, Katherine Kennedy and Robert Horsman

Oct. 6, 2004

Local Saks Fifth Avenue Teams with UCSD
For Events to Benefit Women’s Cancers
To help raise awareness and dollars for all women’s cancers, the Saks Fifth Avenue store in Fashion Valley has partnered with the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center to host “Key to the Cure,” a 4-day shopping event taking place October 14 to 17. During those days, a percentage of all sales will go to support research into breast cancer and women’s reproductive cancers.
(more)

September 20, 2004

New Anti-Inflammatory Strategy For Cancer Therapy
Identified by UCSD Medical Researchers
A new strategy for cancer therapy, which converts the tumor-promoting effect of the immune system’s inflammatory response into a cancer-killing outcome, is suggested in research findings by investigators at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.

The findings provide new insight into the immune system’s response to inflammation, the connection between inflammation and malignancy, and how the delicate balance between cancer promotion and inhibition can be manipulated in the patient’s favor, according to the study’s senior author, Michael Karin, Ph.D., UCSD professor of pharmacology, American Cancer Society Research Professor, and a member of the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center. (more)

September 10, 2004

‘No Excuses’
Moores UCSD Cancer Center Offers
Free Prostate Health Screening

The Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center is sponsoring free prostate cancer screenings for men age 50 and over (or age 45 and over for men in high-risk groups such as African American men, or those with a family history of prostate cancer).

“We’re calling this screening event ‘No Excuses’ because we have removed the barriers that often keep men from having this very important health check,” said Carol Salem, M.D., assistant professor of surgery and director of the Cancer Center’s Urologic Cancer Unit. “There are several days and times to choose from, the screenings are free and offered on a walk-in basis, and parking is free.”

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men (other than skin cancer), and the second most common cause of cancer-related death in the United States. This year more than 200,000 men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. One out of six men will develop prostate cancer at some point during their lifetime. (more)

September 8, 2004                                                                        

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Marks
25 Years of Service to Community
     Anniversary Gift: Free Pamphlets for Preventing, Dealing with Cancer
The Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center is celebrating its 25^th Anniversary and, as a gift to the community, has created three new pamphlets with helpful information from the experts at the Cancer Center. Each pamphlet is packed with 25 tips – for cancer patients, for family members and friends of someone with cancer, or for those who want the latest information on how to reduce their risk of developing cancer. (more)

August 31, 2004                                                                                   

17th Annual Lopiccola Marlin Tournament
to Benefit Moores UCSD Cancer Center
The 17^th annual “For Pete’s Sake” Pete Lopiccola Memorial Marlin Tournament will be held October 28 through 30 at the Hacienda Beach Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Proceeds of the tournament, in which 100 percent of all billfish are released, benefit the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center.

The “For Pete’s Sake” tournament was founded in honor of Pete Lopiccola, who lost his life to leukemia in 1988. The tournament also honors Charlie Faith Jr. and Wally Nielsen, who also died of cancer. (more)

August 24, 2004                                                                   

Moores UCSD Cancer Center Awarded Grant
to Plan Public-Private Drug Development Center
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has awarded a one-year planning grant to the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center to study the feasibility of creating a novel public-private center to speed the process and reduce the cost of developing new drugs and diagnostic techniques for cancer patients. The Cancer Center was one of only 14 planning grant recipients nationwide. (more)

August 5, 2004

UCSD Medical Researchers Are First To Demonstrate
Molecular Link Between Inflammation And Cance