Session Detail


Session Title: Mechanisms of Hereditary Cancer: Beyond the Tumor Suppressor Paradigm
Session Type: Current Concepts and Controversies in Organ Site Research
Session Start/End Time: Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Location: McCormick Place West (Level 1), Room W181
CME: CME-Designated
CME/CE Hours: 2
Session Description: The genetic basis of most human cancers has been generally attributed to germline alterations in tumor suppressors, DNA repair genes, and occasionally oncogenes. However, emerging data indicate that alternative genetic and epigenetic pathways likely play an important role in tumor development in several intriguing disorders. This session will explore three unique mechanisms of malignant transformation that have been traditionally characterized in somatic cancer cells and will, in each example, expand on recent discoveries that highlight their importance in conferring hereditary susceptiblity to cancer. The roles of aberrant telomerase, microRNA, and epimutations indicate that the pathway to cancer predisposition is far more complex than had been previously understood. Furthermore, as these complex mechanisms are more carefully dissected, it becomes more practical to utilize genetic and genomic information to develop rational approaches to genetic testing and early detection surveillance protocols. The last talk in the session will weave these into the framework of the novel molecular mechanisms discussed in the first three presentations.
Presentations:
Chairperson
 David Malkin. Univ. of Toronto Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
Chairperson
 Charis Eng. The Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
DICER and microRNA: Uncharted territories
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:00 AM -11:20 AM
 William D. Foulkes. McGill Univ. Montreal General Hospital, Montreal, QC, Canada
Discussion
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:20 AM -11:25 AM
Telomerase dysfunction in dyskeratosis congenita
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:25 AM -11:45 AM
 Steven E. Artandi. Stanford Univ. School of Medicine, Stanford, CA
Discussion
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:45 AM -11:50 AM
Germline epimutations: More than the genome
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 11:50 AM -12:10 PM
 Charis Eng. The Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
Discussion
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 12:10 PM -12:15 PM
Applying genomics to clinical surveillance: The parachute parable
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 12:15 PM -12:35 PM
 David Malkin. Univ. of Toronto Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
Discussion
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 12:35 PM -12:40 PM
Panel Discussion
 Wednesday, Apr 04, 2012, 12:40 PM - 1:00 PM