Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
ANGIOGENESIS:
Dr. Sue Heffelfinger and members of her research group focus on the regulation of angiogenesis. Because of the clinical interest in breast cancer, they examined the vascular changes in pre-invasive breast diseases and showed that angiogenesis is an extremely early phenotype in the process of transformation (Clinical Cancer Research). In collaboration with David Warshawsky (Environmental Health), they are now testing the dependency of tumorigenesis on this angiogenic phenotype using a carcinogen induced mammary tumor model system in rats. In addition, they have shown that isolated pre-invasive tissues from both rats and humans are angiogenic in vitro and have defined a succession of angiogenic growth factors that regulate this phenotype. Studies are ongoing to define the genetic changes and intracellular signaling events that may be targets for novel angiogenic inhibitors. Finally, in collaboration with Dr. Lower (Internal Medicine), they have examined numerous tumor markers that have prognostic value in breast cancer patients.[ The Web at UC | UC Home ]