Grant: Project Grant

There exists a group of cancers that are commonly associated with a de-differentiated phenotype. This means that they no longer look like the tissue from which they arise; but rather look more like tissue in an embryo. These cancers include de-differentiated endometrial carcinomas (DDEC), small cell carcinoma of the ovary, hypercalcemic type (SCCOHT) and certain small cell lung cancers (NSCLC). All of these cancers have a very poor prognosis; thus we need to find better treatment options. We and others have determined that de-differentiated cancers commonly lose components of the SWI/SNF complex; a set of proteins that regulate which genes can be expressed by remodeling chromatin (DNA and the proteins around which it is wound). In this study, we will determine the extent to which the loss of SWI/SNF components may promote de-differentiation. We will also determine how we may be able to specifically target and kill cancers wherein these genes are lost.