Nature paper from the Cancer Grand Challenges SPECIFICANCER team describes a mechanism through which oestrogen-induced DNA breaks and their repair by inter-chromosomal translocations initiate a cascade of events that result in oncogene amplification in breast cancer. By Cancer Grand ChallengesFocal copy-number amplification is a mechanism that drives cancer; however, the mutational events leading... Source ..read more

Over the past two decades, researchers have increasingly harnessed the power and potential of the ubiquitin-proteasome system to study and treat different diseases. Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) are key components of the pathway and show immense promise as a drug target class, as they act as regulators of many cellular processes linked to human cancer. Thus, small-molecule inhibitors targeting... Source ..read more

Early and facile detection of cancer is crucial for increasing treatment efficacy and improving survival rates. While there are diagnostic tests available for the early detection of a subset of cancers, such as ovarian and colorectal cancers, these often involve invasive procedures which lower their widespread use. Moreover, once cancer is diagnosed, tracking disease progression often relies on... Source ..read more

To achieve our goal of elevating cancer research and therapeutics to new heights, The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research supports collaboration among a variety of disciplines and areas of expertise. To that end, The Mark Foundation Centers have been established at leading cancer research institutions around the world to fund dynamic teams of investigators who are pooling their capabilities... Source ..read more

Cigall Kadoch, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, was awarded The Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award in 2019. Less than three years later, in September 2021, she was selected to become a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator, one of the most prestigious honors in science. Reflecting on the catalytic role played by the Emerging Leader award in advancing her research, Kadoch remarks... Source ..read more

A major goal of cancer genomics research over the last two decades has been to map and understand where mutations carried by cancerous cells occur in the genome and how these mutations functionally drive tumor development. The most highly mutated gene in cancers is TP53, a transcription factor which tightly regulates genomic integrity and cell cycle progression. Notably, there are “hotspot”... Source ..read more

The Mark Foundation’s investment portfolio company (and research grant alumnus) C2i Genomics took advantage of the first in-person AACR Annual Meeting in three years to create a major presence at the conference. C2i Genomics is developing ultra-sensitive liquid biopsy technologies, having spun out of foundational research at Weill Cornell Medicine and the New York Genome Center funded by a 2018... Source ..read more

By the American Association for Cancer Research “Tumors do not grow in a vacuum,” says Marcus DaSilva Goncalves, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, and an endocrinologist who is investigating the effects of insulin on tumor growth. His team is using dietary interventions and anti-diabetic drugs to lower insulin in mice and patients to determine the effects on tumor growth and... Source ..read more

Three Mark Foundation-supported investigators have received the 2021 NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, which supports creative early career scientists pursuing innovative, high impact projects. Emerging Leader Award recipient Philip Kranzusch, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, ASPIRE Award recipient James Neal, PhD, Broad Institute, and ASPIRE Award recipient and former CRI–Mark Foundation for... Source ..read more

By detecting trace amounts of tumor DNA from the blood, physician scientist, Alessandro Leal, MD and cancer biologist, Jillian Phallen, PhD hope to develop a blood test for cancer detection that is minimally invasive, cost-effective, and able to detect tumors before even the faintest of symptoms arise. Growing tumors in the body are constantly turning over, casting off dead cells and spilling... Source ..read more