Interrogation of MYC as a Therapeutic Target and Genetic Platform to Identify Aggressive Prostate Cancers

Currently, the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer—the most lethal form of the disease—is faced with two principal challenges. The first of these is a need for therapeutic strategies that can achieve sustainable tumor suppression. The second involves identifying genes that drive progression of aggressive prostate cancer, which would permit distinguishing it from indolent disease. Or. Ellis' current research addresses both of these challenges, and is poised to have significant clinical impact. His previous work at Roswell Park Cancer Institute resulted in the successful development of a new therapeutic agent (N77A71, which inhibits a prostate cancer causing gene known as c-Myc (MKT During the first phase of his Young Investigator research, he will conduct the first experiments of N77A7 in mouse models of prostate cancer. He will test how effective N77A7 is both alone and in combination with already approved drugs, including docetaxel and androgen depravation therapy. Results from this work will hopefully lead to clinical trials of N77A7 in patients with advanced prostate cancer. The second phase of his research will utilize state of the art mouse models to identify genes that are responsible for driving aggressive prostate cancer. Identification of driver geneswill allow for their potential to be determined as clinical biomarkers and novel therapeutic directions for the identification and treatment of aggressive prostate cancer.