Progress Newsletter Spring 2012 - University of South Alabama ...

NEWSTRATEGIESFOR EARLYDETECTION(from l to r) Robert Raleigh, Tom Kelly, Carlo Contreras, MD, Jana Rocker, Lewis Pannell, PhD,Jack DiPalma, MD, Harry Keegan, Mark ClevelandPancreatic cancer is one of the mostfatal of all cancers. Of all cancertypes tracked by the National CancerInstitute, pancreatic cancer is the onlycancer with a five year survival rate inthe single digits. Most notably, survivalrates for pancreatic cancer have notimproved substantially in the last 40years since the passage of the NationalCancer Act. A major factor underlyingthe poor overall survival is that mostpancreatic cancers are diagnosed inclinically advanced stages. Becausethe pancreas is located deep inside thebody, early tumors cannot be seen orfelt by health providers during routinephysical exams. Patients usually have nosymptoms until the cancer has spreadto other organs or become so largethat normal liver function is impaired(blockage of the common bile ductleading to jaundice). At this stage thecancer is often advanced and treatmentoptions are more limited.Two years ago, Jana Rocker, achildhood cancer survivor, started aPh.D. program under Lewis Pannell,Ph.D., in the Proteomics facility of theMCI. She was interested in utilizingprotein biomarkers to find moreaccessible methods for the detectionof colorectal cancer. Colon sampleswere obtained by using a currentU.S. Preventive Services Task Force(USPSTF) recommended screening testfor colorectal cancer known as a fecalimmunochemical test or FIT.That is how the current researchproject into pancreatic cancer began.While looking for markers for colorectalcancer the research team detectedproteins that indicated the health of thepancreas. The work was exciting andbecame the major focus for Rocker’sPh.D. thesis. This work would not bepossible without the highly collaborativeenvironment that is fostered at theMCI. The proteomics group is workingclosely with Drs. Carlo Contreras andJack DiPalma from the USA HealthSystem as well as Drs. Lee Thompsonand Russell Brown from MobileInfirmary Medical Center with thegoal of developing a test for the earlydetection of pancreatic cancer. The datacollected from these samples helped toestablish the pancreatic cancer diagnosticapproach which led to the filing of anexpedited patent application in 2011.This research attracted the attentionof a major Boston-based company thatrealized the potential health benefitsof early detection of pancreatic cancer.Through the Technology Transfer Officeat USA, MCI entered into an agreementwith this company to continue thispromising research. Dr. Pannell, whojoined the MCI in 2002 as its secondmember, sees this as exactly theway clinical research should work.“There needs to be a close affiliationbetween the research and clinicaloperations,” says Pannell, “to ensure thatapproaches are developed for significantclinical problems that can then betranslated into detection and treatment.”Researchers continued on page 16Examples ofCurrent CancerTests Using ProteinBiomarkers:PSAProstate Specific AntigenBiomarker used inthe early detection ofprostate cancerCA125Cancer Antigen 125Biomarker used tomonitor patients witha known cancer; mostcommonly used withovarian cancer14 Progress | SPRING 2012