Working Groups and Think Tanks

The BCWG is the longest standing working group at the Cancer Center and has participation from clinicians, basic and population scientists across the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Overall goals of the BCWG include enhancing research infrastructure and resources to support breast cancer research at UIC and expanding the breast cancer research and funding portfolio of the Cancer Center.

The BCWG led development of a diverse Breast Cancer Tissue Microarray (TMA). In collaboration with the University of Illinois Biorepository (UIB) and the UI Health Department of Pathology, the BCWG is offering qualified investigators access to sections from TMA for breast cancer research. Plans are in place to expand the availability of other TMAs and organoids for Cancer Center members.

Leader and contact: Debra Tonetti, PhD

Meetings: Monthly, 3rd Tuesday at 4 p.m.

Learn more about BCWG TMA

Breast Cancer Tissue Microarray Request

Cancer cells are distinguished from normal cells by their higher level of glucose metabolism and by other metabolic adaptations to fulfill their anabolic demands. The metabolic changes in cancer cells could uncover vulnerabilities that would ultimately be exploited for cancer therapy. Comprehensive multidisciplinary efforts are required to understand the metabolic demands of tumors both at the cellular and organismal levels. Investigators including basic, population, and clinician scientists from the three research programs at the University of Illinois Cancer Center participate in this working group to foster multidisciplinary collaborations.

Leader and contact: Jonathan Coloff, PhD
Meetings: Monthly, mix of 3rd and 4th Thursdays at 3 p.m.

The goal of the Lung Cancer Working Group is to foster collaborations between various cancer research groups at the University of Illinois to catalyze development of new multi-investigator research on lung cancer.

The LCWG is building on the expertise of specialists in multiple disciplines who collaborate internally and with investigators from other programs and institutions to share services and resources in order to advance research on lung cancer.

Leader and contact: Elizaveta Benevolenskaya, PhD

Meetings: Monthly, 2nd Monday at 11 a.m.

Tumors and their microenvironments are complex entities, and identifying therapeutically feasible approaches to target them requires a comprehensive understanding of their physiological function and pathological dysregulation. Gaining a deeper and a broader understanding into these mechanisms can only be achieved through multidisciplinary approaches.

The Tumor Microenvironment Working Group’s goal is to foster multidisciplinary and collaborative research efforts at the Cancer Center by integrating biology, translational and clinical sciences, and engineering disciplines.

Leader and contact: Ekrem Emrah Er, PhD

Meetings: Monthly, 2nd Tuesday at 3 p.m.

Some candidate themes for the group include colon cancer, cancer risk factors associated with IBD, intestinal metaplasia, colon polyps, bacteria in the oral microbiome and other prevention and causation factors for GI cancers.

Leader and contact: Ece Mutlu, MD, MBA

Meetings: Monthly, 1^st Monday at 4 p.m.

The goals for this group include increasing collaborations between urologists and basic and translational researchers; increasing collaborations between public health and basic and translational research; and aligning PCWG meetings with clinical operations in urology, oncology, pathology, and research.

Research focuses for the group include:

Basic

• Mechanisms of prostate susceptibility to disease and the role of ancestry.
• Responses to therapy and therapy resistance.
• Models of prostate cancer (organoids, cell lines, PDX, metastasis).
• Environmental factors leading to cancer initiation and progression.
• Mechanisms of health disparity in prostate cancer incidence and mortality.

Clinical and Translational

• Sequencing and analyses of patient-derived RNA-Seq datasets.
• Frequency of alterations among our unique patient cohort.
• Health disparities
• Clinical trials

Leaders and contacts: Larisa Nonn, PhD, Don Vander Griend, PhD, and Gail Prins, PhD

Meetings:Monthly, 3rd Monday at 4 p.m.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a priority cancer with worse outcomes for Latinos in Cook County. To address this issue, the Cancer Center formed a Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancer Working Group, which included notable liver cancer researchers to investigate the etiology and behaviors that exacerbate diet-driven HCC. This group will undertake the development of an HCC tissue microarray (TMA) with diverse patient samples that include diseased liver and HCC.

Leader and contact: Jan Kitajewski, PhD

Meetings: Monthly, 1^st Wednesday at 1 p.m.

The Cervical Cancer Think Tank was convened to address the late stage diagnosis and unequal burden of cervical cancer on the Cancer Center catchment population.

The intended outcomes of the Cervical Cancer Think Tank are:

• improved awareness of research and engagement efforts of cancer center members in the cervical cancer space.
• increased opportunities for collaborative research, grant and manuscript development.
• enhanced dissemination of community and catchment data to inform research and policy efforts.

Leader and contact person: Shannon MacLaughlan, MD

Additional Contact: Margaret Wright, PhD

Meetings: Quarterly