Grant: Operating Grant

Tumors are made up of cells that can be recognized by doctors and scientists as a result of several changes they exhibit compared to the normal cells that surround them. One of the changes found in many cancer cells is an increase in the uncontrolled function of certain hormone receptors, in particular one named Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). EGFR signals to cells and tells them to proliferate, survive and to migrate and when uncontrolled, these traits can lead to cancer and metastasis. EGFR is expressed on the outside surface of cells, and when it binds to a hormone called Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF), it begins to move to a cell's interior, a process termed 'internalization'. Scientists have found that EGFR functions differently when it is at the cell surface compared to after it has been internalized. How does EGFR function differently when it is in different parts of the cell? The proposed research will seek to understand how the hormone receptor EGFR works differently depending on where in a cell the receptor is found. EGFR is very important for cancer progression, as when researchers working in a laboratory artificially induce an otherwise normal cell to contain high amounts of EGFR, it causes the cells to become cancerous. These results have led scientists to develop drugs that reduce the action of EGFR to try to treat cancer patients. Although some initial success had been achieved by this strategy, the tumour cells in patients unfortunately become resistant to these drugs, and the cancers returned. So, while drugs that seek to block EGFR show particular promise, new strategies to achieve this goal are required. Understanding how EGFR functions differently at distinct locations within a cell, and how this process is disrupted in tumours may provide novel targets and approaches to treat cancer cells.