Research Funded

Abstract: Ewing’s sarcoma is a devastating disease that affects children and young adults. Current therapies for this disease are highly toxic and lead to significant side effects.  Thus, new approaches to therapy are urgently ne... Read More

Abstract: Alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (aRMS) is an aggressive cancer of skeletal muscle histogenesis that affects children and adults. A signature aRMS mutation is PAX3-FOXO1, which encodes a “super-transcription factor” thought t... Read More

Abstract: Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a tumor of visceral soft tissue which harbors anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene fusions in approximately 50% of cases. ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have been validat... Read More

Abstract: While the introduction of the combination of intensive chemotherapy and multi-modal While the use of chemotherapy, surgery and irradiation have improved outcomes in Ewing sarcoma (ES), such about 70% of patients are cure, ... Read More

Abstract: The Ewing’s sarcoma family of tumors (EFT) is an aggressive childhood malignancy with dismal outcomes for patients with metastatic and recurrent disease. In an effort to identify novel agents against EFT and to provide n... Read More

Abstract: Chordoma is a rare sarcoma believed to originate from malignant transformation of notochordal remnants and accounts for 2-4% of all primary bone malignancies. Previous studies have found that brachyury expression in chordo... Read More

Abstract: The central hypothesis of this proposal is that combining sorafenib which enriches for sarcoma cancer stem cells (CSCs) with Natural Killer (NK) cell immunotherapy preferentially targeting the remaining sarcoma CSCs will r... Read More

Abstract: Research Idea: For the last 20 years, cellular biologists have been focusing on the role of Ras signaling pathway in neurofibromatosis 1(NF1) and its lethal derivation, malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST). Ras-... Read More

Abstract: Standard treatment for sarcoma is surgery and chemotherapy. Drug treatment usually includes a combination of doxorubicin and ifosfamide.  Unfortunately, the efficacy of these agents is hampered by the eventual development... Read More

Abstract: Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignancy of bone. The 5-year survival for OS patients is 60-70% and virtually all deaths result from pulmonary metastases. There have been no demonstrable improvements in OS p... Read More

Abstract: A better understanding of the biology and metabolism of sarcoma growth is necessary to develop novel therapies. Argininosuccinate synthase 1 (ASS1) is the rate-limiting enzyme in the conversion of citrulline to arginine. W... Read More

Abstract: While the 5-year survival rate for localized osteosarcoma (OS), the most common primary bone cancer, is approximately 70%, metastasis decreases this to under 30%, highlighting the need for novel and targeted treatments. We... Read More

Abstract: Ewing Tumors are addicted to aberrant oncogenic transcription factors of the EWS/FLI1 class. Means to target these proteins face substantial technical and economic obstacles. However, my lab and others have shown the impor... Read More

Abstract: Malignant rhabdoid tumors are uncommon but extremely aggressive childhood sarcomas for which there is no adequate therapy. Since rhabdoid tumors are characterized by defects in mesenchymal progenitor cell differentiation, ... Read More

Abstract: Angiosarcomas are an uncommon type of soft tissue tumor, but are clinically aggressive and associated with relatively poor survival. New targets for molecularly-directed therapy are needed. In preliminary genomic analyses,... Read More

Abstract: Tumors are not homogenous in nature, but are heterogeneous populations of cells.  One population, the cancer stem cell (CSC), is thought to be responsible for the initiation and progression of the disease as well as conta... Read More

Abstract: Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is a rare, aggressive tumor of adolescents and young adults characterized by the chromosomal translocation t(11:22)(p13;q12) that generates a novel, chimeric transcription factor... Read More

Abstract: Chordoma is a rare tumor presumed to be derived from remnants of the notochord.  Conventional chordoma is a low-grade malignancy that can be cured with surgery alone, but because chordomas usually arise in places where re... Read More

Abstract: Peripheral chondrosarcoma (PCS) remains a malignancy for which no treatments other than radical surgery have proven effective.  Nonetheless, PCS is one of very few sarcomas which arise from known precursor lesions in the ... Read More

Abstract: Despite its high occurrence, human liposarcoma (LPS) lacks effective treatment options except surgical resection of localized tumor mass.  Progressive disease may have a temporary response to chemotherapy.  Approximately... Read More

Abstract: ETS family transcription factors (e.g. ERG, ETV1) are well-established oncogenes involved in recurrent genomic alterations in prostate cancer, Ewing sarcoma and melanoma.  Recently, we uncovered an oncogenic role of ETV1 ... Read More

Abstract: The overall goal of this proposal is to determine how IGF1R supports transformation by dominantly-acting oncoprotiens found in pediatric sarcomas.  Aim 1 will focus specifically on ETV6-NTRK3 (EN), a dominant chimeric tyr... Read More

Abstract: Synovial sarcoma is a deadly soft-tissue malignancy with a predilection for adolescents and young adults.  The development of sorely needed targeted therapies depends on the identification of critical pathways in synovial... Read More

Abstract: Epithelioid Sarcomas (ESs) are characterized by a locally aggressive behavior and a propensity for lymphatic and metastatic spread.  Current therapy follows general STS treatment guidelines with complete surgical resectio... Read More

Abstract: Despite aggressive surgical and chemotherapeutic approaches, the survival rate among osteosarcoma patients who present with metastasis is ~25% and is ~70% in those who present without metastasis. These survival rates have ... Read More