Molecular Advances Offer New Tools, New Hope For Cancer Studies

Sidebar: Cancer Resources The field of cancer research has been dramatically altered by advances in molecular biology. In some cases, investigators can tease out the precise molecular route by which cells turn cancerous and how those calls are affected by treatments. Researchers are working to understand the nuances of oncogenes, or cancer-causing genes. Others have located cancer susceptibility genes, providing hope for future screening methods and potential treatments. As scientists continue

Written bySteven Benowitz

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Sidebar: Cancer Resources

GROWING FIELD: Cancer genetics has "blossomed in the last few years," notes American Cancer Society’s Harmon Eyre.

"The whole field of genetic understanding of cancer has blossomed in the last few years," says Harmon Eyre, executive vice president of research and cancer control at the American Cancer Society in Atlanta. "This includes the mapping of the human genome, and the isolation of the oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes."

PREVENTIVE EMPHASIS: Columbia’s Frederica Perera says identifying causal factors is a key to effective intervention.

One new field that has developed in recent years is molecular epidemiology. Taking advantage of scientists' ability to peer within DNA and cells, researchers such as Frederica Perera, a professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia School of Public Health, search for biological signposts of heightened cancer risk.

"We need more emphasis on preventing cancer by identifying causal factors early on to be able ...

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