Current Research Project
 
Genetic and Molecular Epidemiology of Adult Glioma
Principal Investigator: Margaret R. Wrensch PhD
Co-Investigators: John Wiencke PhD; Marion Lee PhD; Kenneth Aldape MD; Alex McMillan PhD; Joseph Wiemels PhD; Rei Miike MPH; Karl Kelsey PhD; Gerald DeLorenze PhD; Charles Quesenberry PhD; Allan Bernstein MD; Adriana Weinberg MD; Geoffrey Barger MD
 
The ongoing study compares case individuals diagnosed with glioma to unaffected individuals. The original and continuing studies 1) test hypotheses that case individuals' relatives are more likely than controls' relatives to have had cancer, brain tumor, and/or certain nervous system conditions; 2) evaluate the contributions of shared environmental exposures or cultural practices to familial cancer clustering; 3) test specific genetic models of inherited susceptibility to disease in cases families; and 4) compare familial, demographic, and environmental risk factors in case and control individuals. During this third cycle, we aim to enhance understanding of genetic, environmental, and immunologic factors associated with adult glioma. We intend to: 1) refine homogeneity of astrocytic cases according to possible etiologic subclasses through genetic and immunohistochemical (IHC) classification of five important tumor markers (p53, EGFR, MDM2, p14arf and p16), and 2) assess associations of brain cancer with a) polymorphisms for a variety of genes involved in DNA repair, detoxification of oxidative and other carcinogenic agents, and immune responses, b) antibodies to varicella zoster virus, other herpes viruses and several allergens, and c) other risk factors obtained through interview including personal history of specific infections and allergies, dietary and other exposures to antioxidants and carcinogenic agents, family history, and other factors.