? TUMOR ENVIRONMENT AND METASTASIS The Tumor Environment and Metastasis (TEAM) Program of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center is a multidisciplinary basic science program that evolved from the Tumor Invasion, Metastasis and Angiogenesis (TIMA) Program to reflect recent conceptual advances in our understanding of tumor cell plasticity, heterogeneity and immunology. TEAM retains its strengths in areas of cell adhesion, migration and the role of extracellular matrix in cancer, while adding a new aim in the area of tumor immunology and inflammation. The objective of the TEAM Program is to elucidate how interactions between tumor cells, immune cells and components of the host stromal microenvironment mediate tumor development and progression. Toward achieving this objective, TEAM Program members are addressing the following three specific aims: (1) determine how cells interact with each other and their matrix, and define how adhesion-mediated signaling events affect tumor cell plasticity, invasion and metastasis; (2) elucidate the role of the extracellular matrix and the lympho-vascular system in tumor progression and therapeutic resistance; and (3) understand the role of innate and adaptive immune systems in cancer initiation and progression, and develop strategies to effectively activate the immune system against cancer. The TEAM Program has 35 core members from 14 different departments and 3 schools at Northwestern University. Hidayatullah Munshi, MD, with expertise in cell-matrix interactions and matrix-driven drug resistance, was appointed as the Leader of the TEAM Program to replace Dr. Kathleen Green who became Associate Director for Basic Sciences in conjunction with reorganization of the Basic Science division. Carole LaBonne, PhD, who is interested in understanding how neural crest-derived factors promote tumor progression and metastasis, remains the co-Leader of the TEAM Program. Program members are highly interactive intra- and inter- programmatically, collaborating on joint basic and translational research initiatives. During the last budget year, the TEAM Program received funding of $11,541,419 (direct) in cancer-relevant peer-reviewed grant support, with $2,275,130 (direct) from the NCI and $9,266,289 (direct) from other peer-reviewed sources. Over the course of the current funding period, program members have published 411 cancer-relevant scientific articles. Of these, 24% were in high impact journals, 16% were intra-programmatic, 34% were inter-programmatic, and 73% were inter-institutional collaborations. To successfully achieve the aims of the TEAM Program, future plans of the TEAM Program include strategic recruitment of faculty, particularly in the areas of tumor plasticity and immunology, and working with clinical partners to accelerate clinical translation of basic science discoveries by TEAM members.
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