Preceptors

Sydney Evans VMD, MS:The primary emphasis of the work in the Evans laboratory is to determine causes of treatment resistance in human cancer. The treatment resistance factor that is emphasized is hypoxia.

Costas Koumenis PhD: My laboratory is primarily interested in two broad areas: understanding the mechanisms by which components of the microenvironment interact with cellular survival/apoptotic pathways to produce a more resistant tumor phenotype and the development of novel chemo/radiosensitizers.

Steven Avery PhD: Dr. Avery’s lab studies the development of a dedicated Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imager positioned in the treatment room. The goal of this work is to accurately measure the dose delivered by the proton beam by reconstructing a 3D image of the distribution of positron annihilations created by the proton beam in tissue.

Theresa Busch PhD: Our primary research focus is the investigation of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for the treatment of solid malignancies with a focus on the combination of PDT with signal transduction inhibitors to enhance the therapeutic index in pleural and intraperitoneal PDT in patients.

Keith Cengel MD, PhD: Research in the Cengel Laboratory is centered on modulating the therapeutic index of radiation therapy (RT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) in cancer patients. The lab is currently investigating mutant K-Ras and RT, growth factor signaling and PDT cytotoxicity, and anti-oxidant radioprotectors.

Jay Dorsey MD, PhD: In a broad sense, my laboratory focuses on understanding the underlying mechanisms whereby cancers demonstrate resistance to radiation and chemotherapy and characterizing normal cell/tissue responses to radiation therapy.

Gary Kao MD, PhD: The overall goal of the Kao Laboratory is to understand aspects of cancer and normal cell biology that will ultimately allow us develop and refine anticancer treatment. Current areas of interest include class II histone deacetylases (HDACs), high-throughput screening for novel compounds via zebrafish embryos, and the effects of novel anti-cancer treatment strategies on both cancer and normal cells.

Ann R. Kennedy DSc: The Kennedy laboratory currently studies the mechanism(s) involved in radiation induced malignant transformation and its modification by various chemical agents both in vitro and in vivo systems. The modifying agents being studied include both promoting and suppressing agents for carcinogenesis, with emphasis on agents modifying free radical reactions and protease inhibitors.

Cameron Koch PhD: The Koch Laboratory focuses on the measurment of radioresistant hypoxic tumor cells in vivo using a variety of methods including immunohistochemistry and/or flow cytometry, quantitative fluorescence microscopy using, and the development of fluorine-based PET imaging methods.

Amit Maity MD, PhD: Our current research interests include regulation of VEGF/HIF-1α by the PI3K/Akt pathway, modulation of radiosensitivity by agents that alter signal transduction, and the clinical detection of hypoxia in patients with cancer.

Andrew Tsourkas PhD: Our laboratory is interested in developing molecular imaging probes that target genomic/proteomic anomalies in order to locate and study diseased states in vivo. We are developing probes that target a wide range of biological processes including gene regulation, mRNA localization, protein expression, and enzymatic activity. Multiple imaging platforms are used including magnetic resonance, fluorescence, and bioluminescence and applications range from studying the complex intracellular dynamics of individual cells to the early detection of disease in a clinical setting.

Stephen Tuttle PhD: My current NIH grant is to study the effects of curcumin, a natural plant phenolic, on radiation sensitivity in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo. He is also examining chemically similar natural compounds to determine the properties that enhance the cancer cell response to ionizing radiation.

Arjun Yodh PhD: My current interests span fundamental and applied questions in condensed matter physics, medical and biophysics, and the optical sciences. Areas of ongoing research include: soft materials, complex fluids and networks, carbon nanotubes, laser spectroscopy, optical microsopy & micromanipulation, biomedical optics, functional imaging and spectroscopy of living tissues, photodynamic therapy and nonlinear optics.

Tim Zhu PhD: Our reseach focuses on photodynamic therapy (PDT) with an emphasis on optimization algorithms for light dosimetry, developing a computerized multi-channel light delivery, and enhancing the treatment of intraperitoneal neoplastic diseases.

Andy Minn PhD: Our laboratory is focused on understanding how cancer cells acquire metastatic and treatment resistant phenotypes with an emphasis on tumorigenesis and tissue environmental factors such as hypoxia, immune-mediated attacks, and barriers imposed by surrounding stroma.