Poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) proteins are critical mediators of DNA repair. Many traditional anti-cancer chemotherapy agents overwhelm a cell’s ability to repair DNA damage in order to kill proliferating malignant cells. Recent evidence suggests that cancers within and across tissue types have specific defects in DNA repair pathways, and that these defects may predispose for sensitivity and resistance to various classes of cytotoxic agents. Breast, ovarian and other cancers develop in the setting of inherited DNA repair deficiency, and these cancers may be more sensitive to cytotoxic agents that induce DNA strand breaks, as well as to inhibitors of PARP activity. A series of recent clinical trials has tested whether PARP inhibitors can achieve synthetic lethality in hereditary DNA repair-deficient tumors. At the current time, mutation of BRCA serves as a potential, but not comprehensive, biomarker to predict response to PARP inhibitor therapy. Mechanisms of resistance to PARP inhibitors are only recently being uncovered. Future studies seek to identify sporadic cancers that harbor genomic instability rendering susceptibility to PARP inhibitors that compound lethal DNA damage.

One of the most exciting areas of cancer research now is the development of agents which can target signal transduction pathways that are activated inappropriately in malignant cells. The understanding of the molecular abnormalities which distinguish malignant cells from their normal counterparts has grown tremendously. This volume summarizes the current research on the role that signal transduction pathways play in the pathogenesis of cancer and how this knowledge may be used to develop the next generation of more effective and less toxic anticancer agents. Series Editor comments: "The biologic behavior of both normal and cancer cells is determined by critical signal transduction pathways. This text provides a comprehensive review of the field. Leading investigators discuss key molecules that may prove to be important diagnostic and/or therapeutic targets."

DNA Repair and Cancer Therapy: Molecular Targets and Clinical Applications, Second Edition provides a comprehensive and timely reference that focuses on the translational and clinical use of DNA repair as a target area for the development of diagnostic biomarkers and the enhancement of cancer treatment. Experts on DNA repair proteins from all areas of cancer biology research take readers from bench research to new therapeutic approaches. This book provides a detailed discussion of combination therapies, in other words, how the inhibition of repair pathways can be coupled with chemotherapy, radiation, or DNA damaging drugs. Newer areas in this edition include the role of DNA repair in chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy, radiation DNA damage, Fanconi anemia cross-link repair, translesion DNA polymerases, BRCA1-BRCA2 pathway for HR and synthetic lethality, and mechanisms of resistance to clinical PARP inhibitors. - Provides a comprehensive overview of the basic and translational research in DNA repair as a cancer therapeutic target - Includes timely updates from the earlier edition, including Fanconi Anemia cross-link repair, translesion DNA polymerases, chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy, and many other new areas within DNA repair and cancer therapy - Saves academic, medical, and pharma researchers time by allowing them to quickly access the very latest details on DNA repair and cancer therapy - Assists researchers and research clinicians in understanding the importance of the breakthroughs that are contributing to advances in disease-specific research

Cellular drug resistance is a major limitation to the success of chemotherapy of leu kemia and lymphoma. The importance of this has now been recognized by both clinicians and scientists. It is of utmost importance to bridge the gap between laboratory and clinic in this field of research. This is the main purpose of the series of International Symposia on Drug Resistance in Leukemia and Lymphoma. These are held every three years in Am sterdam, The Netherlands, since 1992. This book contains the proceedings of the third of these meetings, organised in 1998. The book covers all important aspects of drug resistance in leukemia and lymphoma, both in the form of extensive reviews as in manuscripts describing original data. General mechanisms of resistance are discussed, including the drug resistance related proteins p glycoprotein, MRP (multi-drug resistance protein) and LRP (lung resistance protein), and the role of glutathione and glutathione-S-transferases. Moreover, more drug type-specific mechanisms of resistance are a topic, such as for glucocorticoids and antifolates. Much in formation is provided on apoptosis and its regulators, and on the results of cell culture drug resistance assays. Several papers focus on the modulation or circumvention of drug resistance.

Get a quick, expert overview of clinically-focused topics and guidelines that are relevant to testing for HER2, which contributes to approximately 25% of breast cancers today. This concise resource by Drs. Sara Hurvitz, and Kelly McCann consolidates today's available information on this growing topic into one convenient resource, making it an ideal, easy-to-digest reference for practicing and trainee oncologists. - Covers the diagnosis, treatments and targeted therapies, and management of breast cancers that are HER2-positive. - Contains sections on background and testing, advanced disease, therapeutics, and toxicity considerations. - Includes a timely section on innovative future therapies.

This highly informative and clearly written book presents the basic science and the latest data on hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) to provide an up-to-date and holistic overview of the disease. It starts off by presenting the molecular mechanisms, genetic testing and counseling, and variants of unknown significance (VUS) to help readers understand the contemporary interpretation of the disease. Further chapters focus on the surveillance, diagnosis and treatment, including chemoprevention, risk reduction and drug development based on molecular mechanisms. It also includes a chapter on the latest findings from the HBOC database, ethical issues and the parp inhibitors, and discusses innovative thinking to manage and understand the disease. Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer - Molecular Mechanism and Clinical Practice offers breast surgeons, medical oncologists, gynecological oncologists and genetic counselors a comprehensive overview of the disease. Providing insights into recent scientific findings and further avenues for investigation, it is also a thought-provoking and informative read for researchers and scholars.

Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), also termed poly (ADP-ribose) synthetase (PARS) is a nuclear enzyme with a wide range of functions, including regulation of DNA repair, cell differentiation, and gene expression. More than a decade after the identification of PARP-like enzymatic activities in mammalian cells, a novel role was proposed for this e