Grant ID RP100119
Awarded On January 20, 2010
Title A molecularly targeted anticancer therapeutic strategy premised upon attack of aberrant Wnt pathway responses
Program Academic Research
Award Mechanism Individual Investigator
Institution/Organization The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Principal Investigator/Program Director Lawrence Lum
Cancer Sites Multiple Sites
Contracted Amount $1,305,611
Lay Summary

The growth-promoting cellular programs controlled by the Wnt signaling molecules are high priority therapeutic targets given their frequent participation in tumorigenesis. The recalcitrance of underlying mechanisms that support aberrant Wnt pathway activities to chemical perturbation has limited our ability to test the therapeutic potential of this approach.

Our recent identification of two classes of compounds that target distinct Wnt pathway components, both not previously known to be druggable, affords two unanticipated opportunities to disengage aberrant Wnt signaling in cancerous cells. Lung and colorectal cancer are particularly appropriate subjects for these studies, given their assoc...

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