Prostate Cancer Research
Prostate Cancer Research Program
The multidisciplinary Prostate Cancer Research Program (PCRP) was established in 1996 on the premise that knowledge of the biology of disease (prostate cancer) is the foundation of therapy.
The current Director of the PCRP, Dr. Logothetis, is supported by a cross-institutional Executive Committee, which is responsible for establishing the research direction of the PCRP and ensuring funding is aligned with our mission:
- Research infrastructure that can be reliably measured
- Grant support for those project aspects that are otherwise overlooked in the competitive grant environment
- Support for young faculty that can be leveraged into extramural grants and awards
The breadth of expertise on the Executive Committee has encouraged productive collaborations in prostate cancer, including new and refined basic and translational research, efficient clinical trials, drug development, successful grant competition, and publications.
Executive Committee members:
- Donald Berry, Ph.D.
- Bogdan Czerniak, M.D., Ph.D.
- Colin Dinney, M.D.
- Mien-Chie Hung, Ph.D.
- Christopher Logothetis, M.D.
- Gordon Mills, M.D., Ph.D.
- Timothy C. Thompson, Ph.D.
An Advisory Board composed of business and community leaders who are advocates of prostate cancer research oversees the fiscal function of the PCRP.
David H. Koch Center for Applied Research of Genitourinary Cancers
The Koch Center will accelerate the clinical application of advances in the understanding of disease through the integration of basic and clinical research at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
The Koch Center houses the laboratories of 12 scientists with expertise in clinical and laboratory investigation. To develop individualized therapy for patients with genitourinary cancer requires targeting specific pathways, modulating the tumor environment, and stimulating immunity. We utilize sophisticated diagnostics, integrated data management systems, and extensive tissue repositories to accomplish our goals.
Areas of expertise in the Koch Center include:
- Prostate cancer signaling mechanisms and experimental therapy
- Tumor progression and metastasis
- Pathology, including tissue derivatives
- Protein chemistry and bone microenvironment
- Intra-vital molecular imaging
- Bone biology
- Cancer immunology
- Genetics of urothelial cancer
- Gene therapy
- Urology
Faculty
- James P. Allison, Ph.D.
- Bogdan Czerniak, M.D., Ph.D.
- Eleni Efstathiou, M.D., Ph.D.
- Peter Friedl, M.D., Ph.D.
- Gary E. Gallick, Ph.D.
- Sue-Hwa Lin, Ph.D.
- Nora Navone, M.D., Ph.D.
- Padmanee Sharma, M.D., Ph.D.
- Timothy C. Thompson, Ph.D.
- Patricia Troncoso, M.D.
- George Wilding, M.D.
- Christopher G. Wood, M.D.
Post-Graduate Education Program
The Koch Center offers the opportunity for post-graduate trainees to work closely with investigators on critical problems in oncology today, with a focus on the future. Our approach expands the traditional individual focus of other educational programs, opening up the spectrum of cancer research and treatment to multiple contributions from an integrated team.
Basic scientists and clinicians work closely together in the Koch Center to provide highly relevant training in the fundamental and translational aspects of genitourinary cancer research. No distinctions are made in the value of basic and translational science, as they are bound together with the clear intent of improving survival of our patients.
This “community approach” extends to all trainees, where graduate students and postdoctoral fellows work side-by-side to advance the fundamental mechanisms by which cancer progresses and translate these advances to patient application.