Spotlight on Research
Results Show Value of SPOREs
Since their start in 1992, NCI's Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPOREs) have grown to include 27 centers focused on translational research for breast, lung, gastrointestinal, ovarian, prostate, genitourinary, and skin cancer.
Recent advances testify to their value:
- The discovery that smokers who carry certain gene types are less likely than others to successfully quit. This finding raises the possibility that specially tailored cessation programs may help these smokers.
- A better approach to detecting the early signs of lung cancer. Investigators found that the use of fluorescent light in bronchoscopy dramatically improved physicians' ability to identify the early signs of lung cancer.
- Confirmation that family clusters of pancreatic cancer have a genetic basis. After tracking relatives of pancreatic cancer patients since 1994, researchers recently confirmed that those with two or more relatives with pancreatic cancer are at higher risk for the disease. This finding provides important information for these relatives and their physicians and supplies scientists with a vital first step toward identifying the responsible genes.
- Promising results in an initial clinical trial of a treatment vaccine that stimulates the immune system of pancreatic cancer patients to take action against their tumors. Investigators have now expanded testing of this new treatment to a larger number of patients.
- Confirmation that variations in the molecular profiles of different types of breast tumors can yield important clues about the prospects for relapse and long-term patient survival. Other SPORE investigators studying breast cancer reported encouraging results from their studies of ductal lavage, a new approach to early breast cancer detection.
In the coming years, the program will continue to establish centers on the cancers currently under study while expanding to include centers devoted to every major cancer site.
View the proposed schedule for expansion
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