Grant: Project Grant

Cancer is a devastating disease and is the number one killer in Canada. The immune system is the body's primary defence against cancer and is tasked with the elimination of tumour cells. During the emergence of cancerous cells, they can undergo mutations altering their genetic code and enabling the cells to divide rapidly. These cells form the primary tumour that grows in one location of the body and can be medically treated. However, newly formed tumour cells may acquire further mutations that mask them from the immune system. This immunoevasive phenotype allows them to covertly enter the blood and lymph vessels and travel to distant organs. This type of cancer is classified as metastatic upon the successful colonization of these alternative sites in the body. Metastatic cancer is considered the final stage of the disease, and survival of patients with this form of cancer is significantly reduced due to the difficulty of treatment. Recently, researchers have discovered methods that can predict the turning point in cancer where the disease moves from the primary to the metastatic form; by examining the gene mutations that are present in the patient's tumour cells. We have conducted studies on metastatic tumours and have identified a key gene that is involved in metastatic progression. This gene controls the recruitment and activation of a newly described type of white blood cell and our data implies that this novel cell type plays an unidentified role in immunity to cancer cells. This observation has been validated in prostate and kidney cancer patients. Through the use of mouse studies, we will further validate the ability of this gene and the new type of white blood cells it induces, to reduce tumour burden and prevent metastasis. These novel and exciting discoveries will be explored as entirely new immunotherapies for cancer patients and could prevent metastasis.