Treatment Implications for Melanoma with ALS Drug Explored

Newswise — Several distinguished basic and clinical investigators from The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) are showcasing advances in laboratory, clinical and translational research this week at the five-day American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) meeting in San Diego, which concludes today. The work represented by CINJ members is among the 6,000 abstracts being presented at the annual gathering, which is featuring more than 17,000 researchers, healthcare professionals, and patient advocates from around the globe. CINJ is a Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Among this year's abstract presentations is a study testing the effectiveness of the drug Riluzole on those diagnosed with Stage III or Stage IV advanced melanoma, who are slated to have their lesion surgically removed. Riluzole is used in those being treated for ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, which affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.

The investigative team, which includes CINJ surgical oncologists James S. Goydos, M.D., and Jonathan H. Lee, M.D., who also both hold faculty positions in the Department of Surgery at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School; and Suzie Chen, professor of chemical biology at the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy of Rutgers University, say the aim is to see if growth of the disease can be slowed. Currently, patients with melanoma only have a five-year survival rate of less than ten-percent. According to the American Cancer Society, nearly 2,300 new cases of melanoma are expected to be diagnosed this year in New Jersey with 62,000 new cases expected nationwide.

Another study with significant implications for future cancer treatment was highlighted by Lorna Rodriguez, M.D., Ph.D., chief of gynecologic oncology at CINJ and associate professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Dr. Rodriguez is the lead investigator and author of findings of a study looking at the effects of a mineral called selenium in combination with standard treatment for ovarian cancer, which is expected to claim more than 15,000 lives nationwide this year, with 480 in New Jersey.

Currently, the standard of care involves the drugs carboplatin and paclitaxel, which have shown the ability to shrink ovarian cancer tumors; however, that shrinkage may not last for a long period due to drug resistance. Previous data shows that selenium inhibits the development of a tumor's resistance to carboplatin; therefore, Rodriguez and her team are coupling selenium with the two drugs with the hope of preventing or slowing drug resistance.

The CINJ team " which includes gynecologic oncologists Darlene Gibbon, M.D.; Mira Hellmann, M.D.; Wilberto Nieves-Neira, M.D.; and Ami Vaidya, M.D.; Director of Pharmacy, Susan Goodin, PharmD, FCCP, BCOP; pharmacologist Murugesan Gounder, Ph.D.; research teaching specialist Neelakandan Muthukumaran, and Associate Director for Clinical Science, Eric Rubin, M.D. " is planning Phase II studies for patients with ovarian and endometrial cancers in the future.

Dr. Rubin, who is the senior author of the work, also served as the chair of the mini-symposium entitled "Individualized Cancer Therapy; Pharmacogenetics and Pharmocodynamics," at which the selenium study was presented. Rubin also was the chair of an educational session entitled "Go-No-Go Decisions in Clinical Trials," which included discussion of new statistical methods, which could impact decisions for industry and academia in determining whether to enter into such studies. Weichung Joe Shih, Ph.D., head of CINJ's biostatistics group, also spoke at the session.

Rubin's lab also presented a poster highlighting its findings regarding a gene known as Topors, which team members have identified as a potential cause for cancer when defective. Their work relates to trying to understand how the loss of gene function might cause cancer.

About The Cancer Institute of New JerseyThe Cancer Institute of New Jersey is the state's first and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, and is dedicated to improving the prevention, detection, treatment and care of patients with cancer. CINJ's physician-scientists engage in translational research, transforming their laboratory discoveries into clinical practice quite literally bringing research to life. The Cancer Institute of New Jersey is a center of excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. To support CINJ, please call the Cancer Institute of New Jersey Foundation at 1-888-333-CINJ.

The Cancer Institute of New Jersey Network is comprised of hospitals throughout the state and provides a mechanism to rapidly disseminate important discoveries into the community. Partner Hospital: Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. Affiliate Hospitals: Bayshore Community Hospital, CentraState Healthcare System, Cooper University Hospital*, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, JFK Medical Center, Morristown Memorial Hospital, Overlook Hospital, Raritan Bay Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Hamilton (CINJ-Hamilton), Saint Peter's University Hospital, Somerset Medical Center, Southern Ocean County Hospital, The University Hospital/UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School*, and University Medical Center at Princeton. *Academic Affiliate