PMR 515 Principles of Cancer Chemotherapy (4 credits)
SAMPLE COURSE DESCRIPTION

RPCI Werkheiser Conference Rm, GCDC, Room 161
Tuesday and Thursday, 1:30- 3:10 pm

 

Lectures	Topic	Lecturer
A. Nature of the Cancer Cell and Assessment of Drug Action
1.	Introduction to the Principles of Cancer Chemotherapy	Bernacki
2.	Oncogenes and Suppressor Genes	Goodrich
3.	Tumor Progression and Cell Heterogeneity	Slocum
4.	Tumor Angiogenesis and Metastasis	Wang
5.	Tumor Biology and Experimental Therapeutics	Foster
6.	Preclinical Toxicology and Cancer Drug Development	Kanter
7.	Pharmacokinetics Pharmacodynamics and Mathematical Modeling	Smith
8.	Impact of Pharmacogenetics on Cancer Treatment	Blanco
	EXAM I (Lectures 1-8)
B. Biochemistry Pharmacology and Therapeutics Properties of Anticancer Agents
9.	DNA/RNA Reactive Agents I: Anthracyclines Alkylating agents	Beerman
10.	DNA Reactive Agents II: Etoposides Camptothecins Platinum Derivatives	Kanter
11.	Tubulin targeting agents	Kanter
12.	Antimetabolites I: Purines and Pyrimidines	Dolnick
13.	Antimetabolites II: Antifolates	McGuire
14.	Biological Response Modifiers and Immunotherapy	Ehrke
15.	Hormonal Therapies	M. Ip
16.	Drug Resistance	Rustum
	EXAM II (Lectures 9-16)
17.	Spring Break
C. Chemoprevention
18.	Principles of Chemoprevention	Zhang
19.	Molecular Targets for Chemoprevention	Zhang
20.	Chemoprevention Strategy and Trials	Marshall
D. Additional Targets for Chemotherapy
21.	Cell Cycle Regulation	A. Black
22.	p53 and Tumor Cell Apoptosis	Lin
23.	Biological Methylation Antisense and siRNA	Karf
24.	Growth Factor Signaling Inhibitors for Cancer Treatment	Brattain
E. Clinical Development of Therapeutic Agents
25.	Vitamin D: Bench to Bedside	Johnson/Trump
26.	Clinical Evaluations of New Agents	Levine
27.	High Dose Therapy Targeting and Modulation
	EXAM III (Lectures 17-27)

Course Coordinators: R.J. Bernacki, PhD, and J.J. McGuire PhD

This course is designed for the biomedical graduate student or medical professional that is interested in the principles of cancer chemotherapy. Initial lectures are focused on the nature of the cancer cell, describing the genetic, biochemical and pathological changes in cancer. The essentials of pharmacology and toxicology are briefly described as tools used for the assessment of drug action. Following these introductory sessions the majority of the course is dedicated to reviewing the biochemistry, molecular pharmacology and therapeutic properties of the anticancer and chemopreventive agents. These include DNA reactive agents, antimetabolites, hormones, cytoskeletal poisons, chemopreventive agents, molecular targeted agents and biological response modifiers. The clinical uses of these therapeutic agents are given together with the basis for their use in combination (chemo)-therapies. Emphasis is placed on an understanding of the principles of drug action and the molecular mechanisms of each drug discussed. Examples of ongoing research programs are presented.

 

Reference textbooks and current literature are included in the reading materials. Classes meet twice per week and three “essay type” exams are given during the course of study. Letter grades are assigned based on the numerical average of three exam grades.