It’s the dream of every cancer scientist and biotech entrepreneur to bring new hope for cancer sufferers whose therapies are failing. I am so proud of the many talented scientists, clinicians, business leaders and trial participants who contributed to the US Food and Drug Administration’s approval yesterday of AVEO Oncology’s FOTIVDA® (tivozanib) for the treatment of …
2020 was a remarkable year in science, not only for COVID research and but also in the cancer research community’s quest to prevent, detect and treat cancers. Below is my ‘top ten’ list of recent notable advances: (1) COVID-19 Vaccines:Although this is not cancer-specific, the development of vaccines against COVID-19 unquestionably helps cancer patients, whose …
The escalating social and economic burden of an aging world population has placed aging research at center stage. The hallmarks of aging comprise diverse molecular mechanisms and cellular systems that are interrelated and act in concert to drive the aging process. Here, through the lens of telomere biology, we examine how telomere dysfunction may amplify …
Telomeres: History, Health, and Hallmarks of Aging Read More »
Changing mindsets to change behaviors. Up to half of all diseases are preventable with knowledge in hand today and yet we fall short in realizing such social and economic benefit. Moreover, the Covid-19 pandemic has shined a light on an even greater gap in the health and resiliency for underserved communities. For nearly all major …
How Do We Make Disease Prevention a Reality for Underserved Communities? Read More »
The first genetically engineered mice were created more than 40 years ago. Since then, steady improvements in the field have allowed for the generation of experimentally controllable and genetically accurate models for many human cancers. Recent technological advances in genome editing are pushing this frontier and new animal models are directly impacting precision medicine approaches …
November 3rd & 6th, 2021
Animal Models of Cancer Conference Read More »
The event, hosted by the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, the Pontifical Council for Culture, the Cura Foundation, STOQ Foundation and the Stem for Life Foundation, will convene the world’s leading scientists and physicians, patients, ethicists and leaders of faith, government officials and philanthropists to engage in powerful conversations about the latest scientific breakthroughs and hope …
May 5th, 2021
Fifth International Vatican Conference Read More »
Healthcare leaders are entrusted with setting an inspiring enterprise vision to accelerate medical advances and optimize patient care. This requires that leaders establish an environment and culture of trust, transparency, and shared purpose across the organization. Leaders must also be proficient in developing and building diverse groups of individuals and stakeholders into a cohesive and …
Leadership Series 4: Developing and Leading High-Performing Healthcare Teams Read More »
Germline telomere maintenance defects are associated with an increased incidence of inflammatory diseases in humans, yet whether and how telomere dysfunction causes inflammation are not known. Here, we show that telomere dysfunction drives pATM/c-ABL-mediated activation of the YAP1 transcription factor, up-regulating the major pro-inflammatory factor, pro-IL-18. The colonic microbiome stimulates cytosolic receptors activating caspase-1 which …
Telomere dysfunction activates YAP1 to drive tissue inflammation Read More »
Genetic inactivation of PTEN is common in prostate cancer and correlates with poorer prognosis. We previously identified CHD1 as an essential gene in PTEN-deficient cancer cells. Here, we sought definitive in vivo genetic evidence for, and mechanistic understanding of, the essential role of CHD1 in PTEN-deficient prostate cancer. In Pten and Pten/Smad4 genetically engineered mouse models, prostate-specific deletion of Chd1 resulted in markedly delayed tumor progression and …
This is a pivotal moment, one rife with positive outcomes in the longer term equivalent to those of “The Sputnik Moment” of 1957, when we were caught unawares by the Soviets launching the first rocket into space and then the first missile-bearing rocket. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is an unfolding global tragedy, yet a largely preventable …
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