Translating Cancer Data and Models to Clinical Practice

February 10 - 14, 2014

Overview

Modern technological advances in cell and tissue imaging, genomic analysis, as well as the accumulating body of knowledge derived from systematic dissection of cellular signaling pathways has lead to an evolving view of cancer. Cancer is clinically thought of as a whole host of different cellular diseases with different causes and manifestations. Initiators can include viral infections, somatic mutations, and/or germline mutations. Besides genetics, a wide range of physiological processes also influence the progression of cancers, and include development, tissue metabolism, stem cell dynamics, immune responses, and hormonal regulation. Despite this complexity, many aspects of cancer cell biology can often be described by basic paradigms in biology, especially development. This emerging view, coupled with an ever-improving mechanistic understanding of parts of cancer initiation and progression, may enable the physical and mathematical sciences to make new contributions to the field.

This workshop will emphasize an integrated approach to understanding cancer initiation, progression, metastasis, and treatment. Proposed participants will include a number of clinicians and experimentalists whose approach and research may complement and motivate new mathematical and physical modeling, as well as empirical or clinical investigations. Our ultimate goals will be to critically examine and discuss approaches for improving clinical “standards of care” and to foster new investigative directions in applied cancer research that involve the right level of detail in emerging mathematical and physical approaches.

This workshop will include a poster session; a request for posters will be sent to registered participants in advance of the workshop.

Organizing Committee

Gyan Bhanot (Rutgers University)
Tom Chou (University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA))
Doron Levy (University of Maryland)