Cancer Story: Episode III: New Directions

Episode III: New Directions

At any given time, thousands of new cancer treatments are being tested on patients in what are called clinical trials. Some of these trials track minor adjustments in current treatments, while others test radical new approaches such as molecularly targeted therapies, in which specific cell signaling processes are manipulated in hopes of blocking the pathways that allow cancers to grow.

Through interviews with the scientists, clinicians, and patients involved in these studies, viewers feel the excitement and frustrations of research, and learn the prescribed steps by which a drug is tested for safety and effectiveness, the issues surrounding recruiting patients to these trials, the institutional procedures in place to ensure patient safety, and the concerns and hopes of the patients who choose to become subjects.

The program profiles several studies of promising new treatments at various stages of development, starting with Gleevec (developed by Novartis Pharmaceuticals), a molecularly targeted drug that was rushed through the Food and Drug Administration's new fast-track approval process when early trials showed remarkable success in arresting chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). The drug is now being tested to treat other forms of cancer. Viewers also get to see scientists develop a cancer vaccine designed to stimulate the body's immune system to make antibodies that will attack colon cancer. The episode also describes how chemical agents are being used to make cancer cells more vulnerable to radiation, and new advances in imaging that not only show cancer tumors, but track the biological changes taking place during treatment.

Interviews include C. Norman Coleman, MD, director of the Radiation Oncology Sciences Program at the National Cancer Institute; Daphne Haas-Kogan, MD, of the University of California Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco: Andrew Von Eschenbach, MD, director, National Cancer Institute; Eric Larsen, MD, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center; Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD, Harvard Medical School; Richard Stone, MD., Harvard Medical School; Robert A. Weinberg, PhD, Whitehead Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Randal Noelle, PhD, Dartmouth Medical School, and Richard Barth, MD, Norris Cotton Cancer Center.

Additional Materials

Introduction Mark A. Israel, MD Director, Norris Cotton Cancer Center Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Video \| Transcript

Targeting Molecular Defects to Stop Cancer Robert Weinberg, PhD Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research Massachusetts Institute of Technology and C. Norman Coleman, MD Director, Radiation Oncology Sciences Program National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Gleevec Applied to Other Cancers Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Video \| Transcript

Human Genome Project Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Video \| Transcript

Clinical Trial Phases Margaret Mooney, MD Senior Investigator, Clinical Investigation Branch National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Learning about Clinical Trials Margaret Mooney, MD Senior Investigator, Clinical Investigation Branch National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Clinical trials in children Eric Larsen, MD Pediatric Oncologist Norris Cotton Cancer Center Video \| Transcript

Anti-Angiogenesis Robert Weinberg, PhD Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research Massachusetts Institute of Technology Video \| Transcript

Introduction Mark A. Israel, MD Director, Norris Cotton Cancer Center Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Video \| Transcript

Targeting Molecular Defects to Stop Cancer Robert Weinberg, PhD Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research Massachusetts Institute of Technology and C. Norman Coleman, MD Director, Radiation Oncology Sciences Program National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Gleevec Applied to Other Cancers Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Video \| Transcript

Human Genome Project Gary Gilliland, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Video \| Transcript

Clinical Trial Phases Margaret Mooney, MD Senior Investigator, Clinical Investigation Branch National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Learning about Clinical Trials Margaret Mooney, MD Senior Investigator, Clinical Investigation Branch National Cancer Institute Video \| Transcript

Clinical trials in children Eric Larsen, MD Pediatric Oncologist Norris Cotton Cancer Center Video \| Transcript

Anti-Angiogenesis Robert Weinberg, PhD Daniel K. Ludwig Professor for Cancer Research Massachusetts Institute of Technology Video \| Transcript

Episode III: New Directions

Additional Materials

Introduction

Targeting Molecular Defects to Stop Cancer

Gleevec Applied to Other Cancers

Human Genome Project

Clinical Trial Phases

Learning about Clinical Trials

Clinical trials in children

Anti-Angiogenesis

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