ORAL AND GASTROINTESTINAL CANCER

Oral and Gastrointestinal Cancer

BACKGROUND

Cancers of the mucosal surfaces of the oral cavity and gastrointestinal tract are extremely common.

The most common types of gastrointestinal cancers are; esophageal cancer, g astric (stomach) cancer, c olorectal cancer, p ancreatic cancer and l iver cancer.

In the oral cavity the most common type of mouth cancer, accounting for 9 out of 10 cases is squamous cell carcinoma.

There are a number of inflammatory conditions that are associated with an elevated risk of developing cancer, such as ulcerative colitis and oral lichen planus. The association between inflammation and cancer is still not fully understood. In addition, how the microbiome may influence the development of mucosal associated cancers and the immune response is currently unclear.

Our current research is focused on investigating how the microbiome influences cancer progression and treatment outcomes. In addition, we are also interested in how autophagy and disease associated polymorphisms impact on cancer responses to treatment.

Our previous cancer related publications

Spatiotemporal proteomic profiling of the pro-inflammatory response to lipopolysaccharide in the THP-1 human leukaemia cell line. Mulvey et al. Nat Commun. 2021 Oct 1;12(1):5773. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-26000-9
HIF-1α is Overexpressed in Odontogenic Keratocyst Suggesting Activation of HIF-1α and NOTCH1 Signaling Pathways. Miranda da Costa et al. Cells. 2019 Jul 17;8(7):731. doi: 10.3390/cells8070731.
The Microbiome and Radiation Induced-Bowel Injury: Evidence for Potential Mechanistic Role in Disease Pathogenesis. Kumagai et al. Nutrients. 2018 Oct 2;10(10):1405. doi: 10.3390/nu10101405.
Role of HIF-1α and CASPASE-3 in cystogenesis of odontogenic cysts and tumors. da Costa et al. Clin Oral Investig. 2018 Jan;22(1):141-149. doi: 10.1007/s00784-017-2090-6. Epub 2017 Feb 25.
Keratocystic odontogenic tumor overexpresses invadopodia-related proteins, suggesting invadopodia formation. Ribeiro et al Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol. 2016 Oct;122(4):500-8. doi: 10.1016/j.oooo.2016.06.004.