Dr. Wicha (CSC guru) to speak at World Stem Cell Summit

[Rich66]

http://www.newdesignworld.com/press/story/174052

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—University of Michigan researchers will present updates on groundbreaking clinical trials, new insights into basic stem cell biology and reports on some of the latest technical advances at the 2010 World Stem Cell Summit in Detroit next month.

Fourteen U-M researchers and staff members will make presentations. More than 1,000 people from 30 countries are expected to attend the event, Monday, Oct. 4, through Wednesday, Oct. 6, at the Marriott Renaissance Center.

9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dr. Max S. Wicha, director of the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, will explain how cancer stem cell research is being translated into clinical trials. Cancer stem cells are the small number of cells responsible for a tumor's growth and spread. They are believed to be resistant to current chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Laboratory research suggests that blocking the stem cells in a tumor's early stages can prevent a cancer from spreading.

Several clinical trials are currently in progress, with several more in discussions. The trials involve drugs that target a pathway involved in stem cells, combined with a chemotherapy drug to attack the non-stem cells that form the bulk of a tumor.

Researchers recently concluded the first Phase I trial, which enrolled 35 patients at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center and two other U.S. sites. Wicha will discuss preliminary results from that trial.

A full summit agenda, as well as information about registration and fees, is available at http://www.worldstemcellsummit.com/