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New sequencing technology helps identify genetic causes of cancer

Technology that enables an individual’s entire genome to be sequenced in under two weeks is enabling rapid identification of genetic mutations that cause diseases such as cancer.

Genetic mutations become targets for new treatments that can zero in on a malady with greater effectiveness and fewer side effects than conventional therapies, said Dr. Lesleyann Hawthorn, geneticist and Director of Shared Resources for the Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Center.

But those mutations can vary, even in the same disease. “Two patients may have a breast cancer that pathologically looks the same but actually (involves) different genes,” Hawthorn said. That means the same treatment won’t work for both patients.[more]

 

"Cancer is at war in Georgia," Dr. Azziz said.

 Cancer funding needed, Azziz tells legislators

excerpt from the March 9, 2011 Morris News Service
by Walter Jones

ATLANTA -- Dr. Ricardo Azziz, president of Georgia Health Sciences University, told the House Science & Technology Committee this morning that funding is critical to the research needed to win Georgia’s fight with cancer.

Committee members took turns quizzing him about why Georgia’s cancer rates are so much higher than the rest of the nation. Georgians’ diet rich in fat and starch, lack of exercise and smoking all are to blame he said. [more]

 

 

Jackie Ricciardi/Augusta Chronicle Staff

Thanks to new equipment, Dr. Lesleyann Hawthorn's team can sequence a person's entire genome in 10 days for about $10,000.

New gene techniques promising

excerpt from the March 8, 2011 Augusta Chronicle
by Tom Corwin

What once took teams of scientists a decade and billions of dollars to create, Dr. Lesleyann Hawthorn and colleagues can do in 10 days for around $10,000.

Being able to sequence the human genome so quickly and cheaply, thanks to new equipment at Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Center, allows them to take aim at nasty forms of breast cancer and brain tumors that often have poor outcomes.

The HiSeq 2000 sequencing system is the only one running in a core laboratory in Georgia and is part of a push among geneticists to get to the point where a person's entire genetic makeup could be sequenced for about $1,000, a key to moving toward personalized medicine, said Hawthorn, the director of shared resources for the cancer center.

That would be particularly important in cancer, especially in cancers that don't respond well to therapy, she said.

"That's like the ultimate goal for personalized medicine is to be able to target specific tumors in specific people," Hawthorn said. "Because every tumor is a little bit different." [more]

 

Dr. Peter F. Buckley, new Dean of the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Health Sciences University.

Buckley named Dean of Medical College at Georgia Health Sciences University

excerpt from the Feb. 24, 2011 GHSU News & Information
by Toni Baker

Dr. Peter F. Buckley, Interim Dean of the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Health Sciences University since August 2010, has been named Dean of the state’s only public medical college.

“Peter has the vision and the leadership skill to build on the strong reputation of our Medical College,” said Dr. Ricardo Azziz, GHSU President. “In his more than decade of service to the university and the state, he has helped build and restructure programs to maximize their effectiveness and mentored individuals to optimize their job satisfaction and performance. I am very pleased to name him Dean.” [more]

 

Darren D. Browning, PhD

MCG researcher named 2011 Cancer Research Awardee

excerpt from the Jan. 13, 2011 GHSU News & Information
by Staff

Dr. Darren D. Browning, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at Georgia Health Sciences University, has received one of 12 2011 Cancer Research Awards from the the Georgia Cancer Coalition.

Funded by voluntary donations to the Georgia Cancer Research Fund on State Income Tax forms, the $50,000 award will advance Browning's research on the tumor-preventive capabilities of a protein kinase that may help prevent and treat colon cancer.

The coalition received more than 70 proposals for the awards, which are matched by the awardee's organization. Cancer Research Awards often provide... [more]

 

Walter E. Stuckey (left) talks with
his doctor, Farrukh Awan, while
Infusion Nurse, Carol Rauch,
makes some adjustments to
Stuckey's intravenous medicine.

Cancer Clinical Research Unit offers treatment and hope

excerpt from the Jan. 5, 2011 GHSU News & Information
by Toni Baker

In Walter E. Stuckey’s decade long battle with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, he’s also helped fight the war against the blood cancer diagnosed in about 15,000 people annually.

“It’s very important for me to do this because naturally I want to help myself, but in so doing I might be able to bring this to other patients who need it,” said the affable 74-year-old from Martinez, Ga., who has participated in two major clinical drug trials for his disease.

He was living in Thomson, Ga., when CLL first hit. When it returned after two chemotherapy regimens at the Medical College of Georgia, he needed a novel approach, traveling to Houston and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center to participate in the study of the first immunotherapy for the disease.

The drug, rituximab, helps rally the immune system’s attack on CLL, a condition that turns infection fighting white blood cells into leukemic cells that leave patients infection vulnerable. In fact, pneumonia is the leading cause of death from CLL, said Dr. Farrukh Awan, an GHSU hematologist/oncologist and leukemia specialist. ”The immune system gets [more]

 

Phil Jones photo
William King, Director of Flow Cytometry

Newest Cutting Edge Technology

excerpt from the Dec. 15, 2010 Beeper
by Stacey Hudson

The cutting edge just got a little sharper.

A $500,000 grant from the National Center for Research Resources has allowed the GHSU Cancer Center Flow Cytometry Core Facility to acquire an Amnis ImageStreamx Imaging Flow Cytometer.

It s the first of its kind. There s nothing like it, really, said Dr. Lesleyann Hawthorne, associate professor of pathology and director of Cancer Center Shared Resources. GHSU has the only one in Georgia. [more...]

 

Dr. Wendy Bollag with Dr.
Ismail  Kaddour-Djebbar,
a postdoctoral fellow and
co-author on this study.

Ultraviolet light helps skin cancer cells thrive, researchers report

excerpt from the Dec. 07, 2010 GHSU News & Information
by Toni Baker

The sunӳ ultraviolet light activates an enzyme that helps skin cancer cells survive and proliferate, researchers report.

The finding shows another way cancer pirates normal body functions as it points toward better treatment for the million new cases of non-melanoma skin cancers diagnosed in the United States annually, said Dr. Wendy Bollag, corresponding author of the study in Oncogene. Bollag is a cell physiologist at the Georgia Health Sciences University and the Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

ԗe are living longer and getting a lot of UV radiation in the process,Ԡshe said of increasing skin cancer rates. Her research shows that UVӳ ill effects are cumulative and dose dependent: more UV exposure equals more activity by the enzyme protein kinase D. Thatӳ another wakeup call about [more...]

 

   Phil Jones photo

Mei to serve on Chancellor Search Committee

excerpt from the Nov. 04, 2010 USG Newsroom

Dr. Lin Mei was recently appointed to serve on the Chancellor Search Committee that will be seeking the 12th chancellor of the University System of Georgia (USG), to suceed Chamcellor Erroll B. Davis, Jr. upon his planned retirement June 30, 2011. [more...]

 

Dedicated Breast Imager for Cancer Detection

excerpt from the Oct. 07, 2010 MCGHealth Newsroom

Itӳ a part of life after age 40 for most women ֠or at least it should be. Most women know they should begin getting mammograms at this milestone ֠earlier if they have a family history ֠but most donӴ know what to look for when deciding where to get them, experts say.

ԁn imaging center with a dedicated breast imaging physician ֍ someone who only reads images of the breast ֠is preferable,Ԡsays Dr. Suzanne Thigpen, a breast imager with MCGHealth.

The reason, she says, is the age-old wisdom of experience ֠Ԕhe more you do it, the better you get at it,Ԡshe says.

Women may also want to look for a center that can offer a continuum care, [more...]

 

Hamrick named Georgia Health Sciences University Interim Vice President for Research

excerpt from the Sept. 22, 2010 GHSU News & Information
Toni Baker

Dr. Mark W. Hamrick, bone biologist and professor in Medical College of Georgia Schools of Graduates Studies and Medicine, has been named interim vice president for research at MCG.

“Dr. Hamrick, an energetic and successful investigator, collaborator and educator, is an excellent example of the enthusiasm for science on our campus,” said Dr. Gretchen Caughman, GHSU interim provost. A national search for a permanent vice president will be initiated in the coming months. [more...]

 

Dr. Catravas assumes acting director's role

After three years of dedicated service to the Cancer Center, Dr. Kapil Bhalla asked for an administrative leave of absence from his role as director to devote more time to his growing research program.  Dr. John D. Catravas, Regents Professor of Pharmacology, Director of the Vascular Biology Center and Senior Associate Dean for Basic Research, was appointed to serve as acting director in December.

Drs. John K. Cowell and David Munn are leading a search committee to find a permanent director. Both School of Medicine Dean D. Doug Miller, MD, and MCG Interim President James Thompson, MD, thanked Dr. Bhalla for his achievements and re-affirmed their commitment to the support and growth of the Cancer Center as a pre-eminent institutional, state and regional resource.

Dr. John D. Catravas, acting director of The GHSU Cancer Center, Dr. James N. Thompson, interim president of the Medical College of Georgia, and Dr. D. Douglas Miller, dean of the GHSU Medical College of Georgia, welcomed William (Bill) J. Todd, president and CEO of the Georgia Cancer Coalition, in December.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Patients benefit from cutting-edge research

Patients from Augusta, neighboring states and beyond are finding a chance at life in cancer clinical trials at MCG.

And it is often the patients who first contact the Cancer Clinical Trials Research Unit at MCG. “We tell them the things we need, and they will get their physicians involved,” says Pamela Bourbo, unit manager, an RN with a masters in public health and certifications as an oncology nurse and a clinical research coordinator. The unit marked its third anniversary this year.

After the home doctor gets in touch with the unit and sends the patient’s medical records, the unit keeps the doctor up-to-date on the patient’s status and any on-going treatment required. Whatever care can be done at the home doctor’s office, such as drawing blood, the easier and more convenient it is for the patient, says Mrs. Bourbo. “Even though we are in communication with the physicians, it is a way for the physicians to lay their eyes on that patient during that time. It is a joint effort.”

Designed to complement the care given by the community oncologist, the specialized unit administers Phase I (first-in-humans) and Phase II (best-dose) trials. This systematic approach to introducing new drug therapies has produced virtually all of today’s chemotherapy breakthroughs.

The unit, located in the MCGHealth Cancer Center, has grown from two to eight nurses. They follow patients through the studies, gathering and recording detailed data on their progress on what are the newest and most advanced chemotherapy drugs available.

 

The number and types of studies the unit administers have also grown from one to 22 studies open for enrollment, with several more in the process of opening.

 

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