RESEARCH

Areas of interest for the lab include tumorigenesis, drug resistance, disease recurrence, and ultimately, the identification of novel therapeutic agents for curing GIST.

Our molecular, cellular, and computational toolset consists of standard in vitro systems, patient-derived 3D cell cultures, GIST transgenic and xenograft in vivo models, and a diversity of omics approaches, including RNA-seq, ChIP-seq, ATAC-seq, Exome-seq, and single-nucleus RNA-seq.

Using these methods we have identified and are actively investigating several unique aspects of GIST:

1. There is mounting evidence that proper molecular matching of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) to GIST genotype is associated with improved outcomes, thus our goal is to advance tailored GIST therapy by gaining a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving distinct GIST subtypes.

2. We are studying the roles of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in the GIST tumor microenvironment in order to explore a novel strategy for treating GIST: targeting both non-tumor CAFs and tumor cells.

3. Our research also focuses on SDH-deficient GIST, a rare and hereditary subtype of gastrointestinal stromal tumor that predominantly affects adolescents and young adults.