The next installment of Science Café Cleveland will feature a discussion about treatment for patients with breast cancer Monday, April 13, from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Tasting Room of Great Lakes Brewing Co.
Stanton L. Gerson, director of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center and professor of hematology and oncology, and William P. Schiemann, professor of general medical sciences (oncology), will present “New Discoveries in the Biology and Treatment of Breast Cancer” at the event.
The story of breast cancer treatment is one that swings between hope and disappointment. While mammography and chemotherapy produced a dramatic 24 percent decrease in breast cancer mortality between 1990-2000, this positive trend in survival plateaued over the past decade, and metastatic breast cancer remains the second-most prevalent cancer-related killer of women in the United States, annually accounting for more than 40,000 deaths and 227,000 new case of invasive breast cancer.
The presentation will explore several critical issues related to breast cancer metastasis, such as:
- Why do breast cancers metastasize and often remain dormant in a “suspended state of animation” for many years before awakening as incurable lesions?
- Is there a logical evolution to treatment resistance, and if so, can we use this knowledge to personalize patient treatments?
- Are there co-conspirators that aid and abet breast cancer cells during metastasis, and if so, can their inactivation by novel treatments improve the overall survival of breast cancer patients?
Limited menu options will be available for purchase during the presentation.
The Case Western Reserve University chapter of Sigma Xi, WCPN ideastream and Great Lakes Brewing Company will sponsor the event.
More information about the event is available at case.edu/affil/sigmaxi/.