Grant: Doctoral: Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Inflammation is a well-known cause of cancer, and inflammatory lung diseases (such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)) have been associated with an increased risk of developing lung cancer. While the two diseases share known risk factors, the reasons why COPD airway damage leads to lung cancer are unknown. This includes the understudied role of inflammation in inducing damage, which could be an important factor in cancer development. We believe that COPD-related damage promotes cancer formation by causing gene expression changes in both airway cells and immune cells. Further, we believe gene expression changes crucial to cancer growth will be shared between the damaged tissues and the tumours themselves. We will test our theories by assessing the lungs of 15 individuals with COPD and lung cancer (rare samples collected at St. Paul's Hospital). We will identify changes in gene expression, along with differences in immune cell content, throughout the lung, and compare them to tumours in order to identify the changes most associated with cancer formation. This will reveal previously unknown gene expression changes and immune cell responses that are most likely driving cancer development. Additionally, we will build off the work our lab has previously conducted on the airways of COPD patients with and without lung cancer. We will first see if gene disruptions observed in the airways of COPD patients with lung cancer are also found in this rare lung tissue dataset. Second, we will determine if these genes can initiate cancer in normal lung cells by using CRISPR and virus-based gene editing techniques. Finally, we will test whether inhibition of these genes in mice can prevent the development of cancer. My project will lead to scientific discoveries that will help explain why COPD predisposes patients to lung cancer, and will reveal new targets for cancer therapy and methods of cancer prevention.