Breast Cancer Research 

Sharon Cantor, PhD 

The Cantor Laboratory  currently studies two genes that are associated with hereditary cancer.  Mutations in these genes predispose women to early onset breast and ovarian cancer.  Dr Cantor's research efforts have focused on gaining mechanistic insights into the BRCA1-mediated DNA repair and tumor suppression.  

Arthur Mercurio, PhD 

A major area of emphasis in the  Mercurio laboratory  is to understand the signaling pathways associated with integrin engagement and modulation of extracellular matrix-dependent signals contributing to tumor cell survival and tumor cell invasiveness.  This process, generally defined as epithelial-mesenchymal transition is thought to play a critical role in the process of tumor cell dissemination to distant organs, i.e. metastasis. 

Leslie M. Shaw, PhD 

The research interests of the  Shaw Laboratory are aimed at studying the mechanisms of growth factor-mediated signaling in cancer cells.  In particular, a major emphasis of the Shaw laboratory is to dissect the cellular and molecular requirements of IGF signaling and downstream responses associated with cell survival, cell migration and potential invasiveness in the extracellular matrix.  Dr. Shaw is also continuing her work on mechanisms of integrin signaling in the crosstalk between extracellular matrix and tumor cell responses, and in particular on the role of the a6b4  integrin in tumor cell function and maintenance.