Washington University in St. Louis (WU)
My research interest is developing new therapeutic agents for pancreatic cancer. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a downstream mediator in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway that regulates cell proliferation, cell survival and angiogenesis in cancer. We hypothesize that combined blockade of the converging pathways can yield a better anti-tumor activity. Currently, we are in the process of examining the clinical benefit of double blockade with a phase I clinical study of the mTOR inhibitor and the EGFR inhibitor in recurrent/refractory malignancies. Furthermore, we are evaluating the potential predictive factors for treatment response and exploring the mechanism of treatment resistance.