The 40-foot “Health on the Move” community van, operated by Siteman’s Program for Elimination of Cancer Disparities (PECaD), will bring cancer screenings directly to residents of St. Louis and 82 counties in Missouri and Illinois. The van also offers a motorized lift to ensure accessibility for all.
“Siteman Cancer Center is delivering on our mission to prevent cancer in the community and transform the care of patients through scientific discovery,” said Timothy J. Eberlein, MD, Siteman’s director. “By bringing screening, education and prevention strategies out of clinics and into communities, Siteman is extending the reach of our world-class care and research, providing greater access to community members and their families and friends.”
The mobile unit will travel throughout the greater region – from Jefferson City, Mo., to the Indiana and Kentucky borders and from Springfield, Ill., to the Missouri Bootheel – starting in late March.
Available services include:
Fecal Immunochemical Tests (FIT kits), which are take-home stool screening tests for colorectal cancer – an alternative to colonoscopies
Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) tests for the early detection of prostate cancer
Blood sugar tests to detect elevated blood sugar, a risk factor for diabetes
Educational resources to help prevent cancer, diabetes, heart disease and other chronic illnesses
Missouri has the nation’s 10th highest cancer death rate, and the 10th highest death rate due to heart disease, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Illinois ranks 25th and 22nd, respectively. For diabetes, Missouri is 29th and Illinois 39th.
The overall effects of chronic diseases, including cancer, are greater among populations in rural and urban areas that have limited access to health care, said Bettina F. Drake, PhD, Siteman’s associate director of community outreach and engagement. The Health on the Move van addresses this need by delivering internationally recognized research findings and disease screening services to people who need it most.
“Siteman Cancer Center is focused on region-wide impact over time,” said Drake, who also is a Washington University professor of surgery in the Division of Public Health Sciences. “Through our Health on the Move van and other community-focused initiatives, we are widening health-care access to all, putting initiatives in motion that increase screenings and more. When we diagnose cancer and other diseases at earlier stages, we catch them when they are most treatable — and can offer the best opportunity for full recovery.”
Initial screenings are free whether someone has health insurance or not, but an appointment is necessary. PECaD will work with uninsured individuals to find health-care coverage for any recommended follow-up care.
The Health on the Move van will be staffed by Washington University care-team members, including phlebotomists and public health coordinators. All tests will be read by Washington University clinicians, with results typically available two to three weeks after screening.
Normal results will be sent by mail and through MyChart for those with accounts. MyChart is a secure online tool that allows patients to access their medical records and communicate directly with health-care providers. Patients with abnormal test results will receive a personal call to discuss next steps.
The van will make stops in the city of St. Louis and these Missouri counties: Audrain, Bollinger, Boone, Butler, Callaway, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Cole, Crawford, Dent, Dunklin, Franklin, Gasconade, Iron, Jefferson, Lincoln, Madison, Maries, Marion, Mississippi, Montgomery, New Madrid, Osage, Pemiscot, Perry, Phelps, Pike, Ralls, Reynolds, Ripley, Scott, St. Charles, St. Francois, St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ste. Genevieve, Stoddard, Warren, Washington and Wayne.
March is National Nutrition Month, prompting me to wonder how often this column focuses on the links between what we eat and our health and well-being.
The short answer is: a lot. Over the years, it’s been fairly rare that we don’t address eating in one way or another.
What we eat may play a small role in one condition or a bigger role in another, but the overall message has been that choosing healthier foods and drinks is one of the best things we can do for our health.
This not only can help us live longer, it also can help lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, dementia and cancer — among other serious conditions. Healthy eating can also help us keep weight gain in control, which brings many additional benefits.
Admittedly, though, in a time of nonstop news and social media influencers, it can be hard to know what “healthy eating” exactly means.
The good news is, when we take a step back, the basics of a healthy diet are pretty simple — and they haven’t changed much over the past few decades.
Overall, the main focus is on eating more healthy foods from plants while cutting back on foods high in sugar and unhealthy protein. Try to:
Choose more fruits and vegetables— Make fruits or vegetables a part of every meal. While fresh options are great, frozen and many canned versions are good choices too, as long as they’re low-sodium and unsweetened.
Choose more whole grains— A lot of nutrients, and health benefits, get stripped from whole grains when they’re processed for foods like white rice and white bread. Try to choose 100% whole-wheat bread, whole-grain pasta, oatmeal and other foods labeled “whole-grain” or “100% whole grain.”
Choose more healthy drinks— Opt for healthy options to stay hydrated, including unsweetened tea and coffee, fizzy water or plain water flavored with a splash of lime juice. Sugary soda and similar drinks are linked to weight gain and obesity. And many specialty coffee drinks can have a lot of calories and added sugar.
Choose more healthy fats and oils— Instead of cooking with butter, lard or other oils high in saturated fats, try to choose options like canola and olive oils, which are higher in healthy unsaturated fats.
Limit fast food and other processed foods— Although convenient, fast food and processed foods are typically high in calories, salt and unhealthy fats. We don’t need to avoid them totally but cutting back is the healthiest choice.
Limit red and processed meats— Choosing healthier protein options like chicken, fish, beans and nuts, is healthier than picking red and processed meats.
Limit alcohol – zero is best — Alcohol has a lot of risks, including increasing the chances of developing several cancers. So, not drinking alcohol is the healthiest choice overall. Alcohol-free versions of beer and other drinks can be good alternatives to try – and something I’ve been enjoying lately.
It’s pretty remarkable that one of the more powerful tools we have for improving our health and lowering the risk of many diseases is something we do every day.
It’s not always easy to put healthy eating into practice, but we don’t need to tackle it all at once. Small changes to one or two areas can make a difference, and we can build from there.
It’s not a race; it’s a step-by-step journey — fueled with healthy food.
Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer will feature findings from Washington University physicians Matthew Powell, MD, Lindsay Kuroki, MD, and others.
Washington University clinicians and researchers at Siteman Cancer Center will highlight their work against gynecologic cancers at the Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer, March 14-17 in Seattle.
Hosted by the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO), the conference convenes multidisciplinary expertise in the treatment of cervical, ovarian, endometrial and other cancers.
Presenters include:
Matthew Powell, MD, the Ira C. and Judith Gall Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University, who will discuss findings of the phase 3 ENGOT-OV43/GOG-30 clinical trial for advanced nonmutated epithelial ovarian cancer.
Lindsay Kuroki, MD, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and associate director of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology. She will discuss research focused on high-intermediate and high-risk early stage endometrial cancers.
Learn more on the Siteman and meeting websites. Follow the meeting on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram using #SGOMtg #AM25IMPACT #SGO2025.
A breast cancer vaccine launched at Siteman Cancer Center is one of two Washington University research projects featured in this year’s STAT Madness, a bracket-style competition of academic research institutions.
The breast cancer vaccine, spearheaded by William Gillanders, MD, the Mary Culver Distinguished Professor of Surgery at the School of Medicine, has shown promising results in a small clinical trial. Following treatment, 14 of 18 patients showed immune responses to the vaccine and, after three years, 16 patients remained cancer-free. Learn more.
The other Washington University research project featured in the contest involves psilocybin, the psychedelic compound produced by “magic” mushrooms, that can affect brain function. Researchers report that the compound destabilizes a critical network of brain areas involved in introspective thinking. The findings provide a neurobiological explanation for the drug’s mind-bending effects. Learn more.
In May of 2023, Kate Johnson noticed a mass. Within a matter of months, Kate was diagnosed with Stage 4 Rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive soft tissue sarcoma that is extremely rare in adults. Together with the help of Siteman Cancer Center and her oncologist Dr. Brian Van Tine, Kate was able to approach her cancer journey with hope, strength and resolve.
“The care I received at Siteman made all the difference. Every aspect of my journey was met with unwavering support and expertise,” Kate reflects.
Dr. Van Tine, the Sarcoma Program Director at Siteman and one of the top sarcoma specialists in the nation, had an indelible impact on Kate’s journey.
“Dr. Van Tine became a pillar of strength during my treatment,” Kate says. “He took the time to understand me not just as a patient, but as a person. His honesty was something I valued deeply; he always provided hope and a clear path forward without sugarcoating the challenges. His philosophy of treating the whole person, not just the disease, helped me stay strong mentally and emotionally, which was just as important as the physical battle.”
“Personalized treatment is rooted in empathy,” Dr. Van Tine says. “I think it’s important to create a sense of trust and comfort with patients, helping them feel seen, understood and informed.”
By conducting innovative research on cutting-edge treatments that have the capability to bring forth new treatment opportunities for patients like Kate, Dr. Van Tine’s laboratory has become a leader in sarcoma treatment and understanding.
“Our laboratory studies how to take advantage of molecular weaknesses in cancer cells to develop drugs and therapies that target those weaknesses,” Dr. Van Tine says. “By understanding the metabolism of tumor cells, my team takes bench-level findings to clinical trials, strategically developing combination drug therapies that will transform how sarcomas are treated.”
Seeing the impact of Siteman’s dedicated physicians and advanced research firsthand, Kate became progressively more interested in Dr. Van Tine’s work. Guided by hope and gratitude, Kate formed ‘Kate’s Krew‘ to champion Dr. Van Tine and his research team’s groundbreaking efforts, working to help fuel the next big breakthrough in the treatment of this rare cancer.
“Kate’s Krew started as a support system during my treatment and has now grown into a community dedicated to making a difference. I hope to inspire others to support Siteman Cancer Center and contribute to the future of cancer research. Philanthropy ensures that institutions like Siteman can continue their vital work, and physicians like Dr. Van Tine can keep making life-changing discoveries and providing incredible care.”
Dr. Van Tine agrees that visionary support is integral to the future of transformational cancer research.
“Private philanthropy fuels innovation in cancer research. It provides the necessary funding for clinical trials, new therapies, and advanced technology that can save lives. Without private support, many groundbreaking advancements would not be possible,” Dr. Van Tine says.
Make a gift to the Siteman Annual Fund in honor of the life-changing medical professionals like Dr. Brian Van Tine today and join Kate, Dr. Van Tine and the Siteman community in their mission to prevent cancer and transform cancer patient care through scientific discovery.
They are advancing cellular and gene therapies through numerous studies across various subspecialities, sharing their research and clinical findings related to in vivo gene therapy, CAR T-cell therapy, stem cell transplantation and more. In total, affiliated clinicians, researchers and administrators are involved in 17 presentations.
More than 2 million people will be diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancer in the U.S. this year, according to the American Cancer Society. USA Today highlighted signs to look for and spoke with Washington University medical oncologist Alice Zhou, MD, PhD, at Siteman Cancer Center about those at risk.
Better understanding how myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) develop
Identifying a treatment for a broad range of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) independent of individual mutations
Improving outcomes for brain tumors in children
The projects will benefit from $1.89 million in new grants awarded through the Siteman Investment Program. The goal of the grants is to support and accelerate the pace of innovation in cancer research. The money awarded comes from a variety of sources: Pedal the Cause annual bike event and Illumination Gala through the Cancer Frontier Fund at The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital; the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) from the National Cancer Institute; the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Research Fund; the Siteman Discovery Fund; Swim Across America – St. Louis; and various philanthropic gifts via Siteman Cancer Center.
This grant cycle also includes a new clinical trial focused on a combination immunotherapy treatment for metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer that will expand the horizons for improved understanding of how the immune system responds to and may guide treatment of this disease.
The funded research projects are described below.
New Clinical Trial Category
Project Title: A Phase Ib Study Evaluating the Safety and Tolerability of Sipuleucel-T (Sip-T) in Combination with an N-803 in Patients with Metastatic Castrate-Resistant Prostate Cancer (mCRPC)
Goal: To determine the recommended phase 2 dose of an immunotherapy treatment for metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer that combines a protein called N-803 with a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved cellular immunotherapy called sipuleucel-T (Provenge). Researchers hypothesize that the combination will have an acceptable safety profile and will be feasible to administer in this population.
Project Summary: Immunotherapy is an emerging treatment platform for cancer patients that can be highly effective. However, only a subset of patients demonstrates long-term responses. A persistent challenge has been how to identify patients that would benefit, and how to enhance immunological treatments to benefit more patients. This proposal addresses these critical issues by:
Combining two immunotherapies that the researchers have shown work together in preclinical models
Advancing a promising functional scanning technology to noninvasively characterize the immune response in these patients
Prostate cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer in males. Surgery or radiation can be curative when treated early and localized to the prostate; however, it is incurable once it has spread. Novel modes of treatment are needed. The researchers propose to combine Sipuleucel-T, an FDA-approved adoptive cell therapy for prostate cancer with modest outcomes, with N-803, an immunostimulatory engineered protein that binds to interleukin-15, a cytokine involved in activating immune cells. N803 has recently been FDA-approved for bladder cancer. The researchers will establish optimal dose and schedule for this new combination approach across three treatment cohorts. They will study the immune responses in blood, and use novel, functional noninvasive imaging of the active immune system using a novel radiotracer (specific for an immune mediator called granzyme-B). Together, this work is immediately impactful to men with prostate cancer and expands the horizons for the improved understanding of how the immune system responds to and may guide treatment.
Pre-R01 Category
Project Title: Mechanisms Driving Obesogenic Diet-accelerated Gliomagenesis in NF1
Goal: To improve the outcomes for brain tumors in children. This proposal aims to determine how different dietary components (fat and sugar) affect tumor formation, epidermal growth factor (EGF) levels and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling in a murine model of pediatric brain tumor formation, and then to determine whether inhibition of EGFR prevents diet-accelerated tumor formation in this model. This information will be used to improve dietary counseling in patients and to design subsequent studies testing the benefits of risk-adapted therapeutic strategies in children with brain tumors and poor dietary exposure.
Project Summary: As we enter into an era of precision pediatric oncology, it is becoming increasingly important to identify the factors that underlie the risk of brain tumor development. This challenge is particularly relevant for individuals with cancer predisposition syndromes like NF1, where 15-20% of children born with a germline NF1 gene mutation develop optic pathway gliomas (OPGs). Our inability to provide accurate risk assessment information for these young children leads to frequent sedated neuroimaging, suboptimal visual screening and delays in instituting treatment for those at greatest risk. The researchers recently performed pre-clinical studies that found exposure to an unhealthy, obesity-promoting diet (obesogenic diet, Ob) increased the likelihood of OPG development in NF1 mouse models. They also identified that these animals have much higher levels of epidermal growth factor (EGF) in their blood. Based on these observations, as well as findings that a high-fat diet drives tumor formation in other tumor types through activation of the EGF receptor (EGFR), the researchers hypothesize that high dietary fat intake drives NF1-OPG formation through increased EGFR signaling. In this grant, they propose to perform a detailed analysis of how different diets (high-fat, high-sugar or high-fat, high-sugar) affect NF1-OPG formation and how this correlates with circulating EGF levels. They will then inhibit EGFR through genetic and pharmacologic means in Ob-diet-driven NF1-OPG to determine whether this impairs tumor formation. Taken together, these experiments will determine how dietary composition affects tumor formation and the role of EGF in this process. This will provide a foundation for future investigations to determine whether EGF may be used as a biomarker to detect children at higher risk of NF1-OPG due to dietary exposure and to ascertain whether EGFR-directed therapy could be a useful addition to the existing treatment strategy of NF1-OPG in children with poor diets.
Project Title: Enhancing CAR T-cell Therapy for Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma
Goal: To improve anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CART19) therapy for patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (r/r LBCL). Currently, long-term disease-free survival with commercial CART19 in r/r LBCL is only about 40%, so more strategies to improve the efficacy of CART19 are warranted.
Project Summary: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a common type of fast-growing non-Hodgkin lymphoma. In about 33% of patients, DLBCL returns after the first treatment (relapsed DLBCL), or the first treatment is not effective and the patient is not cured (refractory DLBCL). The FDA has approved three chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies for use in adults with relapse or refractory DLBCL. T cells are a part of the immune system and help protect the body from infection and cancer. CAR-T therapy involves engineering healthy T cells to attack cancer cells. Unfortunately, about 50% of patients treated with CAR-T cells will relapse again with DLBCL within eight months. Interleukins are a type of protein that help activate our immune system to fight infections and cancer. Three interleukins named IL-7, IL-15, and IL-21 are especially effective at helping T cells survive, proliferate and kill infected cells. In this proposal, the researchers are testing if IL-7, IL-15 and IL-21 can help CAR-T cells kill DLBCL. Since interleukins are very short-lived and only last for one to two hours, they are testing novel long-acting versions of IL-7, IL-15 or IL-21 that last two to three days in humans. In part 1 of their proposal, the researchers are performing a clinical trial to determine if a drug named NT-I7, which is a long-acting version of IL-7, is safe and effective in helping CAR-T cells kill DLBCL tumors. In part 2, they are testing a new compound named HCW9206 that merges IL-7, IL-15 and IL-21 into a single long-acting drug. Their studies with HCW9206 will test its safety and ability to help CAR-T cells kill DLBCL in mice.
Project Title: Targeting Myeloid-biased Multipotent Progenitor to Rebalance Lineage Output in MPNs
Goal: To identify a treatment for a broad range of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) independent of individual mutations. This project will focus on cells called multipotent progenitor 3 (MPP3), the expansion of which are common in a range of MPNs, and will investigate whether the process of controlling MPP3 blood cell production mechanisms can be targeted to regulate the excessive production of myeloid cells and form the foundation of a future therapy.
Project Summary: Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are a group of diseases characterized by too many white blood cells, red blood cells or platelets in the bone marrow. There are several well-known disease-causing mutations, and researchers have targeted these mutations to develop treatments. Although targeted therapies have revolutionized MPN treatment, they are not curative in most cases as the mutant cell population driving disease development and recurrence is usually not eradicated. However, their success in controlling disease development and progression has shown the clinical importance of normalizing blood production in disease contexts. Additionally, there are patients without known driver mutations, with no targetable driver mutations or who develop resistance to targeted therapies. Therefore, a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying myeloid cell expansion, a shared feature of various MPNs, is necessary to develop new treatments to be used in combination with current targeted therapies or as alternatives for patients who are ineligible for current therapies. The goal of this study is to find a treatment that is applicable to a broad range of MPNs independent of individual mutations. The researchers’ previous work found there is a specific immature bone marrow population, called multipotent progenitor 3 (MPP3), that can generate white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets. Importantly, MPP3 is expanded in various MPN mouse models regardless of their driver mutations. Interestingly, distinct MPP3 subsets are specifically increased corresponding to the overproduced mature cell types in MPNs. This indicates that controlling the production of different MPP3 subsets can regulate disease development and progression irrespective of disease-causing mutations. For this project, the researchers propose to study two commonly dysregulated pathways in human blood malignancies to control the production of distinct MPP3 subsets. Their study will provide insights into the common mechanism underlying MPN development and foundations to develop broadly applicable therapeutic interventions.
Project Title: Targeting HOXB13-mediated Immune Suppression of Prostate Cancer
Goal: To demonstrate that a protein called HOXB13 can be targeted to treat prostate cancer with novel combination therapies. The study will benefit African American patients expressing increased HOXB13 through genetic and epigenetic mechanisms.
Project Summary: Prostate cancer disproportionately affects African American men compared to white men. Recently, a HOXB13 variant (X285K) predisposing to prostate cancer in men of West African ancestry was reported in a large-scale germline genetic testing. HOXB13-X285K was significantly enriched in self-reported Black (1.01%;~21000 men screened) versus white (0.01%) patients. HOXB13-X285K carriers tended to have more aggressive disease, due to increased protein stability that resulted in an increase in cell proliferation. Besides germline mutations, gain-of-function modification in HOXB13 bump up HOXB13 RNA and protein levels. Thus, screening for HOXB13 expression and development of effective treatments is critical to improve clinical outcomes. Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen-Targeted Imaging (PSMA-PET) imaging could be combined with molecular profiling of prostate biopsies for HOXB13 expression in white and African American patients for early detection and treatment of aggressive prostate cancers.
Results from this study will reveal previously unknown epigenetic regulation of immune suppression in prostate cancer. The researchers’ pre-clinical studies will advance the use of other checkpoint inhibitors alone or in combination with PD-L1/PD-1 axis to overcome poor response to immunotherapy. The results will provide the basis for combination therapies to improve treatment outcomes for prostate cancer patients.
Project Title: Regulation of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Metabolism by Stathmin 1
Goal: To determine how the gene called Stathmin 1 (Stmn1) regulates hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) metabolism and contributes to hematopoietic malignancies, especially leukemia. The researchers predict that high levels of Stmn1 support the needs of growing leukemic cells, and that it may be a new therapeutic target on which to focus.
Project Summary: The gene stathmin 1 (Stmn1) is expressed at high levels in normal blood stem cells and is overexpressed in blood cancer cells. The researchers’ preliminary studies suggest that Stmn1 is important for supporting various aspects of healthy blood stem cell metabolism, including maintaining healthy mitochondria and protein turnover in the cell. They predict that high levels of Stmn1 in leukemia cells are necessary to sustain the unique metabolic needs of leukemia cells. The proposed studies will determine the mechanisms by which Stmn1 influences blood stem cell metabolism, and in future studies researchers will determine whether inhibition of Stmn1 impairs the growth of leukemic blood cells. Ultimately, these studies will test Stmn1 as a novel therapeutic target to treat leukemia. As Stmn1 is overexpressed on multiple types of blood cancers, and loss of Stmn1 in mouse models has few effects outside of the blood system, the researchers predict that Stmn1-directed drugs could be useful to treat a wide variety of leukemias with limited side effects.
Project Title: Defining How the Role of DDIT4 in Mitochondrial Metabolism and Turnover Impacts Chemotherapy Responses in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Goal: To identify molecular pathways that support chemotherapy resistance in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and utilize that information to identify potential new therapeutic targets. This proposal will specifically focus on a protein called DNA-Damage Induced Transcript 4 (DDIT4) that the researchers hypothesize supports AML cell survival and chemotherapy resistance and will establish that targeting this protein in a certain pathway will have therapeutic potential for leukemia patients.
Project Summary: Annually, approximately 1 in 12,500 Americans are diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and more than 12,000 die from the disease. The overall survival rate of AML patients is below 25% for adults and 70% for children, and these poor outcomes are largely due to high rates of resistance to the current standard-of-care treatments and disease relapse. The researchers have discovered that a protein called DDIT4 (DNA-Damage Induced Transcript 4) may play a central role in how AML cells evade current chemotherapies. This project will decipher the molecular mechanisms by which DDIT4 promotes chemotherapy resistance as well as test whether pharmacological targeting of DDIT4 enhances the anti-leukemia effects of current chemotherapies.
Project Title: Rescuing BRCA1 Haploinsufficieny and DNA Replication Fork Stability with Antisense Oligonucleotides
Goal: To study early detection strategies for breast and ovarian cancer in women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations and research molecularly guided and nonsurgical interventions to prevent tumor development.
Project Summary: More than 1 in 500 women are affected by mutations in the breast cancer susceptibility genes BRCA1 or BRCA2. While it is known that these women have up to an 80% risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer in their lifetime, exactly why these cells become cancerous is unknown. The only preventive options currently available are risk-associated prophylactic surgeries of ovary/fallopian tube and breast removal, which result in surgical menopause and significant aesthetic consequences. Therefore, two major challenges that women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations currently face are the lack of:
Early detection strategies to identify which carriers will develop these malignancies
Molecularly guided and nonsurgical strategies to prevent breast and ovarian tumor development
This project joins experts in DNA replication (Alessandro Vindigni, PhD), RNA processing (Sergej Djuranovic, PhD), and ovarian cancer (Mary Mullen, MD, MSCI) to tackle these challenges. The researchers know that BRCA1 is important for DNA replication and it helps protect the genome. Women with mutations in the BRCA1 gene have less BRCA1 protein in their cells. The researchers believe this lack of BRCA1 protein causes problems with DNA replication. These problems lead to more mutations in the genome, which can cause cells to become cancerous. They will test these new ideas using fallopian tube cells, new technologies from the Vindigni lab, and samples from patients. Next, they will use a technology developed by the Djuranovic lab called “antisense oligonucleotides” to increase BRCA1 protein levels. The researchers think that by increasing this protein, they can stop the unstable replication forks and prevent mutations that cause these cancers. Collectively, their studies will:
Define the early changes that happen when normal fallopian tube cells with BRCA1 gene mutations turn into tumors
Establish novel nonsurgical strategies to prevent ovarian cancer development in women with BRCA1 gene mutations
Goal: To begin developing a new way to treat patients suffering from myelodysplastic syndrome, or MDS, by understanding how blood cells with mutations grow and expand. This project will test the safety and efficacy of selectively eliminating mutated blood cells by hyperactivating a pathway that reduces their growth, which could improve patients’ lives.
Project Summary: Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are one of the most common types of blood cancer in adults. MDS patients suffer from problems related to low blood counts, including life-threatening infections and bleeding. Once MDS develops, the only cure is a bone marrow transplant. However, most patients are not eligible for a transplant due to their advanced age and other illnesses. Understanding how MDS develops may help researchers identify new ways to treat patients with MDS.
Up to half of MDS patients have mutations in genes in their blood cells that regulate how RNA is stitched together in a cell, called RNA splicing. A goal of this project is to understand how blood cells with a gene mutation that controls RNA splicing grow, expand and cause MDS. The researchers observed that early after a cell gets an RNA splicing gene mutation, mutant cells grow slower than normal cells. However, over time, a mutated cell changes and outgrows normal cells, causing MDS and other blood cancers. The researchers are studying what happens early after a mutation occurs in a blood cell so they can identify ways to kill cells with the mutation.
Their initial studies identified a pathway in mutant blood cells that they can hyperactivate to preferentially kill mutated cells in a culture dish. The researchers now want to test if they can kill mutant cells in preclinical models and see if it is safe. If this works, they could design a trial to test if a new approach could kill mutated MDS cells in patients and improve their lives.
We’ve made it past Groundhog Day — again — but whether Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow or not, winter can often feel unending this time of year.
Across the country, we’ve had long stretches of cold temperatures and bad weather. And even when things start to defrost, the days can feel too short and the nights too long. This combination can make it harder to keep up with regular routines, including being physically active.
But there are many good reasons to work on staying active through winter. On top of the health and wellness benefits, maintaining our routines can also prepare us to enjoy springtime activities when the days finally turn nicer. We’ll have energy and fitness for long walks around the neighborhood, family bike rides to check out daffodils at the local park or pick-up ball games with our kids or grandkids.
Almost any type of movement can have benefits. But given the ongoing winter weather, indoor activities and exercises can often be the simplest — and safest.
Indoor sessions can feel a bit bland compared to getting outside, especially when you’re inside week after week this time of year. That makes it important to find activities you really enjoy. If one activity doesn’t click, try another. Be creative and keep experimenting. There are many options that count as physical activity, and you’re likely to find some — and maybe many — you really like.
Local recreation centers can have stretching and cardio classes, open gym hours and exercise equipment, like treadmills, bikes and ellipticals. Malls or big box stores can offer special hours for walking groups. And streaming sites can have a huge variety of online exercise videos that can be followed at home.
If none of these sounds good, just taking regular standing breaks throughout the day can have benefits.
One good way to stay consistent with our activity through winter is to set an accessible and specific goal to slowly work toward. Maybe that’s building from one gym class per week up to three a week by the end of March. Or building from 20 minutes of walking on the treadmill three days a week to walking 40 minutes three days a week. Or moving from doing little or no planned activity to streaming two stretching and core classes per week. And, of course, if you ever have any questions about fitness or health, contact a health professional.
It can also really help to have the support of friends and family. This can mean going to the gym or streaming a class together or simply sharing our goals and the progress we’re making. The activities themselves can be more fun when we’re with others, and it can help keep us on track since we know others are also following our progress.
And the more regular we can be with our activities, the easier it can often be to fit into our schedules. When our treadmill time or basketball games become a normal part of our weeks, we’re less likely to skip them when work and family life get busy.
While winter may feel like it’s on a loop right now, before long the days will get noticeably longer and the temperatures will warm. And the activity we’ve put in through the coldest months will help us really enjoy some great springtime outings.
Dr. Graham A. Colditz, associate director of prevention and control at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, is an internationally recognized leader in cancer prevention and the creator of the free prevention tool YourDiseaseRisk.com.
Srikanth Singamaneni, PhD, the Lilyan & E. Lisle Hughes Professor at the McKelvey School of Engineering
They are among the162 new senior members who will be inducted at the NAI’s annual conference in June.
Aaron DiAntonio, MD, PhD
Aaron DiAntonio, MD, PhD
DiAntonio is being recognized for outstanding contributions to the field of neuroscience, especially for showing how nerves respond to injury and disease and for developing ways to protect them from degeneration.
After injury and in some diseases, axons — the long fibers of nerve cells throughout the body — spark a self-destruct mechanism that disrupts communication in the nervous system. This is common to many neuronal injuries and diseases, revealing potential for a treatment for multiple disorders.
Working with WashU’s Office of Technology Management (OTM), DiAntonio co-founded Disarm Therapeutics, a startup developing medicines to stop the loss of axons and to prevent or treat a range of diseases, which has been acquired by Eli Lilly.
John DiPersio, MD, PhD
John DiPersio, MD, PhD
DiPersio, who treats patients at Siteman, is being recognized for outstanding contributions to understanding blood cancers and for the development of new ways to improve therapies for such cancers, including leukemia and lymphoma.
His work focuses on improving stem cell transplantation and developing novel cell-based immunotherapies. Working with the Office of Technology Management, he co-founded Wugen, a WashU startup creating investigational cellular immunotherapies. He developed so-called “universal” CAR-T cell therapies, which don’t require the donor and recipient to have matching immune systems.
DiPersio is developing small-molecule drugs to help collect more healthy stem cells from donors more easily, increasing the chances for successful transplants.
Srikanth Singamaneni, PhD
Srikanth Singamaneni, PhD
Singamaneni is an international pioneer in the design, synthesis and biomedical applications of plasmonic nanostructures.
His research integrates nanotechnology and biomaterials to create innovative products with applications from diagnostics to wastewater treatment.
His lab has pioneered the design and synthesis of ultrabright fluorescence nanolabels and devised methods to preserve biomolecules under harsh conditions. He holds numerous U.S. patents and licenses the core plasmonic fluors technology to Auragent Bioscience, where he is co-founder and chief scientific officer.
