Anil Vachani, M.D. is a member of the Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Division at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and is a faculty-fellow in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology. The career development component of the award proposed herein includes a preceptorship with Dr. Timothy Rebbeck, Director of Cancer Epidemology at Penn, and advanced coursework in molecular epidemiology. Additional training will be obtained in laboratory techniques necessary for the conduct of well designed molecular epidemiologic studies. This program of didactic and applied instruction will extend Dr. Vachani's training, will be directly applicable to timely completion of his research proposal, and will provide him with the necessary foundation to become an independent investigator in the molecular epidemiology of lung cancer. The goal of the proposed research is to evaluate the role of candidate genetic polymorphisms in the determination of outcomes among patients with lung cancer. Lung cancer is the most common worldwide cause of major cancer incidence and mortality. At present, the ability to predict outcome in patients with surgically resected tumors is limited. Although surgical therapy may be curative, a number of variables including mechanisms related to the immune system may influence the risk of recurrence and survival in patients with resected lung cancer. The hypothesis underlying Dr. Vachani's project is that higher levels of immune tolerance and escape play a key role in the outcome of NSCLC. More specifically, we will test the association of genetic variation in immunosuppressive genes with tumor characteristics and outcomes in patients with NSCLC. Gene-gene interactions and higher order interactions will also be evaluated. Results from this project may provide valuable insight into immune mechanisms involved in lung cancer progression and allow for the identification of patients that may benefit from adjuvant therapy, particularly novel immunotherapeutic strategies.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Academic/Teacher Award (ATA) (K07)
Project #
1K07CA111952-01A2
Application #
7147646
Study Section
Subcommittee G - Education (NCI)
Program Officer
Gorelic, Lester S
Project Start
2006-08-09
Project End
2011-07-31
Budget Start
2006-08-09
Budget End
2007-07-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2006
Total Cost
$138,429
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Pennsylvania
Department
Biostatistics & Other Math Sci
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
042250712
City
Philadelphia
State
PA
Country
United States
Zip Code
19104
Kossenkov, Andrew V; Dawany, Noor; Evans, Tracey L et al. (2012) Peripheral immune cell gene expression predicts survival of patients with non-small cell lung cancer. PLoS One 7:e34392
Patnaik, Santosh K; Yendamuri, Sai; Kannisto, Eric et al. (2012) MicroRNA expression profiles of whole blood in lung adenocarcinoma. PLoS One 7:e46045
Kossenkov, Andrew V; Vachani, Anil; Chang, Celia et al. (2011) Resection of non-small cell lung cancers reverses tumor-induced gene expression changes in the peripheral immune system. Clin Cancer Res 17:5867-77
Vachani, Anil; Moon, Edmund; Wakeam, Elliot et al. (2011) Gene therapy for lung neoplasms. Clin Chest Med 32:865-85
Showe, Michael K; Vachani, Anil; Kossenkov, Andrew V et al. (2009) Gene expression profiles in peripheral blood mononuclear cells can distinguish patients with non-small cell lung cancer from patients with nonmalignant lung disease. Cancer Res 69:9202-10