Research Programs at the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota
The Cancer Center's eight research programs bring together scientists from different disciplines to discover specific processes that affect cancer. Their discoveries lead to better ways to treat and prevent cancer.
Breast Cancer Researchers in this program work to improve breast cancer detection, treatment, and prevention in order to increase breast cancer survival.
Cancer Progression and Metastasis Researchers in this program investigate what happens at the molecular level, once the cancer develops, that enables cancer to grow and spread. Their goal is to develop drug therapies that block these molecular mechanisms, resulting in smaller tumors and reducing metastases, spreading beyond the primary site.
Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Researchers in this program strive to determine how cancer causing agents (carcinogens) produce tumors, and to develop methods to interfere with and stop cancer before it can grow.
Genetic Mechanisms of Cancer Researchers in this program work to understand how mutant genes cause cancer and to test gene therapies. They investigate what occurs inside the cells to trigger cancer and what can be done to stop these processes before cancer begins.
Immunology Researchers in this program work to enlist the body's own immune system to fight cancer by focusing on tumor immunology, immunotherapy, and on white blood cell development and behavior. Their goal is to uncover answers about these areas that can lead to effective new anti-cancer immunotherapies.
Prevention and EtiologyResearchers in this program seek to stop cancers before they start, and to detect them at an early stage. They look for answers about the biological, social, psychological and environmental factors that influence cancer to start. They also use laboratory, clinical, and population-based research to study how to prevent cancer and detect it early. The Prevention and Etiology Research Program also includes the
Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center and the
Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer.Translational ResearchResearchers in this program aim to improve cancer treatment and detection by translating basic research discoveries into clinical trials. They identify and promote promising findings; expedite translation of findings into human trials; and perform trials that assess new therapies, alternate application of therapies, new diagnostic tests, and new chemoprevention approaches.
Transplant Biology and TherapyResearchers in this program work together to discover new stem cell transplantation therapies and improve treatment outcomes in patients. Through basic research in stem cell biology and immunology, they seek to translate their findings into innovative transplant methods. The Transplant Biology and Therapy Reserach Program includes the
Umbilical Cord Transplant Program.
