The University welcomed world-renowned cancer researcher Dr. Garth Nicolson, an expert in biochemistry and molecular genetics of cancer progression, Wednesday at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine.
Dario Marchetti, professor of tumor biology in the department of comparative biomedical sciences at the Vet School, said Nicolson has been nominated for a Nobel Prize and is regarded as a pioneer in the field of cell biology.
He currently is the president, chief scientific officer and a research professor at the Institute for Molecular Medicine in California.
Nicolson’s main area of expertise, cancer progression, provided the majority of the content which was addressed.
“Breast cancer is a staggering problem and affects one
in seven women,” Nicolson said.
The lecture examined the role metastasis plays in the progression of all cancers, not solely breast cancer. Metastasis refers to the spreading of cancer cells to distant areas of the body.
Nicolson said cancer patients generally do not die if the cancer stays localized. The illness becomes fatal when the cancer begins to spread to distant areas.
Metastasis is one of several steps which advances cancer, Nicolson said.
Nicolson said he and his colleagues are interested in obtaining the information required to combat metastasis.
According to Nicolson, cancer progression involves collective changes in the structure of genes and the process cannot be looked at simply. The advancement of cancer is a complex process which possesses numerous facets.
Nicolson’s research supports the idea that over-expression of certain genes leads to the spread of cancer cells. In the lecture, he focused on MTA1, which is a gene associated with metastasis.
Nicolson said MTA1 is not a mutated gene, nor a gene which causes cancer. It is only the over-expression of this gene that a presents a problem, Nicolson said.
When these genes move into areas such as the brain, the patient’s prognosis is greatly diminished, he said.
Nicolson hopes to combat this invasion, and increase patients’ chances of survival against the disease.
Recent national and international news articles have been published linking long-term antibiotic use to an increased risk of breast cancer. Nicolson adamantly addressed the claim, which he referred to as “hogwash.”
He said he believes the increased risk actually is linked to infections which these antibiotics are meant to treat. Cancer patients who are infected with bacteria naturally require antibiotics to combat their infections, he said.
Nicolson said he believes infections are linked with the progression of various cancers. He explained that these infections allow the cancer to progress at an elevated rate.
Nicolson said he hoped to present this issue in a different light than the media. He stressed his point that antibiotic use does not cause cancer.
Nicolson left his audience with these few words of wisdom: “Don’t believe everything you read in the newspaper.”