Triple negative breast cancer affects some 30,000 women yearly in the U.S., with a predominant effect on young women and those of African descent, and is the most challenging type of breast cancer to treat. Dr. Aubrey Thompson, Mayo Clinic researcher and Bankhead-Coley 2010 Research Project
Grant recipient, is leading a first-time study of the genetic mutations involved in triple negative breast cancer in order to develop new treatments.
Understanding the genetic mutations normal cells undergo to become cancer cells is critically important because the information can be used to create more effective treatments than currently available. To help researchers study cancer’s underlying processes, Dr. Thompson developed a powerful technology that enables scientists to look at a class of genetic mutations in solid tumors for the first time. His long-term goal is to apply this technology to individual patients, identify every mutation in each tumor, and tailor therapy to the specific types of mutations that drive the tumor.
Simply put, Dr. Thompson’s research team is working to figure out how to reduce cancer incidence and mortality in Florida, and to increase life expectancy for Florida cancer patients.
Bankhead-Coley Funding Accelerates Research Progress
“We could not have developed this technology, conducted these experiments, or identified these mutations in triple negative breast cancer without Bankhead-Coley Program funding,” Dr. Thompson explained. “To obtain National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, we have to prove the importance of the project first, which is impossible without funds for preliminary experiments. The NIH is very conservative and makes few awards to high-risk, high-gain projects.”
As a result of the Bankhead-Coley Grant, Dr. Thompson and his collaborators are applying this novel technology to clinical trials in breast cancer; negotiating with a drug company regarding a clinical trial to understand which patients will respond well; and negotiating with a company to develop new diagnostic tools for cancer.
“The Bankhead-Coley Grant has enabled us to take the step from the lab to the clinic. My collaborators are extending this work to pancreatic, renal, liver, and thyroid cancers. This is the most exciting work I’ve done in my career.”
“Through my involvement with national committees and granting agencies, I have found it is critically important to fund cutting-edge research because it enables Florida’s investigators to compete more effectively with individuals in other states who don’t have this kind of funding. The King and Bankhead-Coley Programs are wonderful strategies for promoting advances in health in the state and for enabling researchers to do cutting-edge work, which advances the science more rapidly.”
