The General Hospital Corporation

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Broad Institute, Inc.

Kenneth Tanabe

Steven A Carr

Richard O Hynes

Karl Clauser

Alexandra Naba

Bryan C Fuchs

Hiroshi Kawasaki

Proteomic methods for identifying cancer related proteins and related products and kits are provided. The cancer specific proteins are extracellular matrix proteins that are associated with various aspects of cancer. Panels or signature sets of proteins useful in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancers as well as monitoring therapeutic progress in a cancer patient are provided herein along with methods for their detection and for their use in targeting imaging and/or therapeutic agents to the tumors via binding to the specified proteins. The proteins were identified using proteomics analyzes of tissue samples taken from cancer patients. In certain aspects the proteins are particularly useful in colon cancer patients.

Cancer-related extracellular matrix signatures and related methods and products

This invention relates generally to a therapeutic use of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors to reduce fibrosis, e.g., liver fibrosis, or pre-cirrhosis in a subject.

Methods of treating liver fibrosis and pre-cirrhosis with epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors

The present invention relates to diagnostic and prognostic methods to determine the likelihood of a subject who has a inflammatory disease or liver disease of developing cancer. In particular, the present invention relates to methods for identifying subjects with increased susceptibility to developing cancer, such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) where the subject has an inflammatory disease, such as, but not limited to cirrhosis, by identifying a variance or polymorphism in the human EGF gene. In particular, the methods of the present invention relate to identifying subjects with increased susceptibility to developing cancer such as HCC, where the subject has an inflammatory disease, such as but not limited to cirrhosis, and the subject is identified to have a single nucleotide polymorphism 61A&#x3e;G in the 5'UTR of the EGF gene. Alternatively, the methods of the present invention relate to identifying subjects with increased susceptibility to developing cancer such as HCC, where the subject has an inflammatory disease, such as but not limited to cirrhosis, and the subject is identified to have increased expression of EGF as compared to a reference level of EGF expression. The present invention also relates to administering an effective amount of an anti-cancer therapy to subjects identified to have an increased susceptibility of developing cancer such as HCC by the methods as disclosed herein, and kits to identify a subject with a 61A&#x3e;G polymorphism in the 5&#x2032;UTR of the EGF gene or kits to determine increased EGF expression in subjects with chronic inflammatory disease.

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) expression and/or polymorphisms thereof for predicting the risk of developing cancer

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Brookline, MA, United States of America

Kenneth Tanabe