Grant: Operating Grant - PA: Regional Partnership Program - Newfoundland and Labrador

Early detection and diagnosis is thought to be the best way to intervene and cure a potentially deadly cancer. For prostate cancer, which affects 1 in 6 men, a significant proportion of tumors may remain indolent for several years without physically affecting the patient. Alternatively, some prostate cancers progress rapidly such that prompt and radical intervention is needed. Treatment for prostate cancer is not without the risk of significant morbidity in terms of quality of life, so it would be important to discern early which patients will benefit from intervention once a diagnosis is made. The physician and patient grapple with making decisions as to if, when and how to treat, whether to use surgery, radiation and/or systemic treatments including androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and chemotherapy. Rationally developed diagnostic and prognostic markers for disease progression would greatly assist in the clinical decision process. Generally, which tumors are likely to be aggressive and need commensurate treatment, and which are likely to be dormant or slow-growing for which "watchful waiting" would be more appropriate and safe? Presently, there are few factors used to determine the likelihood for tumor progression and behavior. Our research is directed to developing new molecular tools, one of which is called Pygopus designed to analyze and target a molecule that has an essential role in prostate cancer.