Updates in cancer research: insights from the AACR 100th Annual Meeting

Abstract

Pivotal presentations from the 100th Annual Meeting 2009 of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) are reviewed in this article, along with discussion of scientific findings and their impact on clinical practices and ongoing clinical trials. Among these presentations, the report on predictive biomarkers for targeted therapies may lead to the possibility of selection of the right drug for the right patient. The results of cancer genomic researches has started to yield surprising insights into the pathogenesis of a range of different cancers, with analyses of somatic copy number alterations, genomic rearrangements and sequence mutations. Cancer stem cells have again been confirmed to play an important role in therapeutic resistance, promoting angiogenesis and metastasis. A diversity of viewpoints from different cancer types regarding the current understanding of cancer stem cell biology was introduced. MicroRNA alterations were also investigated and findings of recent studies were summarized. Apart from cancer cells, researchers have begun to examine the communication between the tumor cells and its surroundings. Novel findings on tumor microenvironment and inflammation were introduced. The latest developments of nanotechnology and biomarker discoveries were also presented. In addition, there were clinical trials supporting the use of new targeted therapies, while other researchers focused on cancer prevention using existing agents and approaches. These and other important presentations from the AACR Annual Meeting 2009 are discussed in this article, which intends to provide updates on the cancer research presented in the most important cancer research meeting in the world.

Keywords::

• cancer genomics
• cancer stem cell
• clinical trial
• microRNA
• nanotechnology
• predictive biomarker
• tumor microenvironment

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The author has no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.