Inspecting the Stroma to Eliminate Metastatic Osteosarcoma

Su Young Kim, MD, PhD,  National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute
Recipient of the: $25,000 Sarcoma Foundation of America Research Award

Patients with metastatic osteosarcoma have a poor overall survival rate of 20%. The importance of stromal cells in the metastatic process is becoming well established. We have preliminary data to suggest that induction of genes in the stroma may contribute to metastasis in osteosarcoma. Our hypothesis is that the molecular signals that occur between osteosarcoma cells and the surrounding stromal cells lead to metastasis.