Division researchers are exploring the molecular mechanism of environmental carcinogenesis and developing the Dynamic BH3 Profiling (DBP) in Patient-Derived Organoids (PDO) from live patient tumor samples.
With this model, researchers are testing whether the DBP-PDO platform will predict which drugs prime the mitochondria toward tumor cell death. Investigators are developing this BH3 profiling technique for use in solid thoracic cancers with the goal of providing patient-specific, precision treatments by specific targeting of anti-apoptotic proteins that cause therapeutic resistance. This exciting research is a departure from most current approaches, focusing on downstream targets that sidestep tumor cell mutations that have so often frustrated treatment efforts.
The Division of thoracic surgery focuses on diseases of the chest that include cancer such as lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and mesothelioma as well as non-cancer diagnoses such as lung failure after transplantation. The division leverages the high volume of patient care to optimize tissue collection and trial enrollment so that while we care for our patients, we develop the treatments for the future.
Within the division, multiple National Cancer Institute, NIH, Department of Defense, and Cancer Prevention and Research Institute Grants of Texas are currently supporting these efforts.
Systems Onco-Immunology Laboratory
The Systems Onco-Immunology Laboratory (SOIL) uses and develops innovative methods within the context of multi-omics technologies to investigate cancer-immune system networks and inform the design of novel approaches to immunotherapy.
Ripley-Xu Lab for Translational Thoracic Oncology Research
The Ripley-Xu Lab for Translational Thoracic Oncology Research team focuses on targeting the mitochondria to undermine therapeutic resistance.
