News | Hale Family Center For Pancreatic Cancer Research

Lustgarten Foundation Advances Pancreatic Cancer Research Through Partnerships with the Opening of Two New Laboratories

September 21, 2018

The Lustgarten Foundation is pleased to announce two new pancreatic cancer research laboratories through respective partnerships with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The opening of these Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Laboratories will usher in a new era of research progress and represents an initial $10…

Study resolves decades-old mystery about the most commonly mutated gene in cancer

September 17, 2018

The most commonly mutated gene in cancer has tantalized scientists for decades about the message of its mutations. Although mutations can occur at more than 1,100 sites within the TP53 gene, they arise with greatest frequency at a handful of points dubbed “hot spots.” Does this imbalance suggest that hotspot mutations…

Finding New Ways of Treating Pancreatic Cancer

September 11, 2018

When he walks into Dana-Farber Cancer Institute every day, medical oncologist Brian Wolpin, MD, MPH, isn’t just prepared to treat the patients who await him inside. As director of Dana-Farber’s Gastrointestinal Cancer Center and Hale Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research, he’s also constantly thinking about how new research could improve…

Drs. Aguirre, Hahn and Wolpin published a study in Cancer Discovery that reported on real-time genomic characterization of advanced pancreatic cancer to enable precision medicine.

September 1, 2018

Drs. Aguirre, Hahn and Wolpin published a study in Cancer Discovery that reported on real-time genomic characterization of advanced pancreatic cancer to enable precision medicine. (Aguirre AJ, et al. Real-time Genomic Characterization of Advanced Pancreatic Cancer to Enable Precision Medicine. Cancer Discov. 2018;8(9):1096-111. Epub 2018/06/16. doi: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-18-0275. PubMed PMID: 29903880.). Read the…

Study finds inherited gene variants in 10 percent of pancreatic cancer patients

July 2, 2018

A large study of pancreatic cancer patients has found that almost 10 percent harbored inherited genetic variations or mutations that may have increased their susceptibility to the disease. At the same time, some of these mutations were associated with more favorable responses to certain chemotherapy agents, according to the scientists…

Loss of peripheral fat and muscle occurs early in development of pancreatic cancer

June 22, 2018

In mouse models, loss of muscle and fat in early pancreatic cancer may be caused in part by a tumor-related decrease in production of pancreatic enzymes, report scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Additionally, muscle and fat tissue wasting was common in a large cohort of…

Lustgarten newsletter spring 2018: Dr. Brian Wolpin, Focused on Personalized Medicine

April 1, 2018

Dr. Brian Wolpin was featured in the Lustgarten newsletter with the focus on personalized medicine. Read the story. “In approximately one-third of patients, we find a mutation or genetic alteration that can be treated with a therapy that is either in clinical trials or used for other types of cancer,”…

“Saving by Shaving” flagship event raised 6.5 million dollars for Dana-Farber

March 8, 2018

This year’s “Saving by Shaving” flagship event organized by Granite Telecommunications raised 6.5 million dollars for Dana-Farber cancer research. Granite staff along with local celebrities and government officials shaved their heads in a show of solidarity for patients undergoing cancer treatment. In return, the Hale family made a gift to…

Drs. Wolpin, Hahn, and Aguirre published a study in JAMA Oncol that reported on the survival from pancreatic cancer with different genetic alterations

March 8, 2018

Drs. Wolpin, Hahn, and Aguirre published a study in JAMA Oncol that reported on the survival from pancreatic cancer with different genetic alterations (Qian ZR, et al., Association of Alterations in Main Driver Genes with Outcomes of Patients With Resected Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma. JAMA Oncol. 2017).

Dr. Wolpin receives news that his Lustgarten grant has been selected for funding.

January 15, 2018

Dr. Wolpin receives news that his Lustgarten grant has been selected for funding.