Dateline
New research centers to probe molecular life of cells
Research technician Chris Fiore examines a human tissue microarray in the Center for Molecular Oncologic Pathology.
Two centers designed to help translate scientific discoveries about the molecular workings of cancer cells into treatments for patients have been established at Dana-Farber.
The Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Center for Molecular Oncologic Pathology (CMOP) and the Center for Biomedical Imaging in Oncology (CBIO) are part of a growing collection of research units specializing in such areas as genome discovery, imaging, cancer vaccines, applied science, proteomics, and population sciences.
Opened in June, the CMOP features sophisticated instruments and a team of experts seeking to obtain patterns of genetic alterations in human tumors to better understand how various drugs affect them. Tumor cells can be captured and isolated from complex tissues with lasers or studied with automated microscopes and image analyzers.
This kind of work is critical to the evolution of cancer care toward "personalized medicine," which is tailored to the molecular traits of each patient's tumor.
"The Center for Molecular Oncologic Pathology has become a hub where researchers studying primary tumors obtained from patients can interact and collaborate," says Director Massimo Loda, MD, who is also a senior pathologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Dana-Farber's partner in this center. Other investigators include Dana-Farber's Keith Ligon, MD, PhD; Ronny Drapkin, MD, PhD; and Shuji Ogino, MD, PhD.
Meanwhile, the Center for Biomedical Imaging in Oncology will integrate two types of imaging at Dana- Farber: that performed on patients (clinical) and on laboratory animals (preclinical). The clinical work is done on the main campus, while the preclinical work will take place in a new facility on Dana-Farber's Harbor Campus, named the Lurie Family Imaging Center.
Slated to open in fall 2008, the Lurie Family Imaging Center is designed to boost the Institute's capacity in the increasingly important area of sophisticated bioimaging. It will feature miniature versions of scanners, such as MRI, CT, PET, ultrasound, and bioluminescence devices. Investigators will use the equipment to examine laboratory mice and seek to better understand the effects of experimental drugs that hold hope for blocking genetic pathways involved in cancer.
The imaging facility staff will collaborate with colleagues based at MIT, Harvard, and other Harvardaffiliated hospitals, particularly Brigham and Women's, which is building a new cyclotron to produce radioactive tracer compounds used in these studies, with financial support from Dana-Farber.
A $16 million gift to the Institute's Mission Possible fundraising campaign is supporting development of the Lurie Family Imaging Center, as well as the Nancy Lurie Marks Professorship in Medicine.
"The establishment of the Center for Biomedical Imaging in Oncology will give scientists and clinical investigators unprecedented access to cutting-edge preclinical imaging technologies under one roof. It will also integrate preclinical and clinical imaging research activities seamlessly," says Annick D. Van den Abbeele, MD, chief of Radiology at Dana-Farber and founding director of the CBIO. "We hope this approach will help bring promising new drugs to the Institute, and allow for more rapid evaluation of these drugs and quicker translation into clinical trials and practice."