The Breast Cancer Research Center at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is a multidisciplinary coalition of breast cancer researchers working on different pivotal topics in the field. The center serves as a central hub to understand breast cancer across the cancer continuum better, starting with disease prevention and education and continuing through advanced therapeutics and survivorship. We are committed to collaborative research that will aid the development of innovative treatments, enhance quality of life, and improve survival outcomes.
Researchers at the center employ basic, translational, and population-level approaches to interrogate risk factors, disease disparities, cancer progression, metastasis, the tumor microenvironment, and tumor metabolism. Furthering our understanding in these key areas is essential for the development of precision therapies and, ultimately, novel and effective clinical interventions.
An aspect of the research center that sets us apart from other institutions is our commitment to community engagement. We dedicated ourselves to making our findings accessible to the community to democratize information, encourage preventative lifestyle choices, and raise awareness of promising new therapies.
Research focus
Our researchers have expertise and special interest in the following foundational research areas. We believe these to be the frontiers of advancing treatment and improving outcomes for breast cancer patients in the Buffalo area and beyond.
Areas of research
Population studies
Addressing health disparities and risk factors to prevent and better treat the disease.
Foundational breast cancer biology
Assessing the genetic or epigenetic causes of breast cancer with a focus on fundamental properties.
Tumor evolution
Addressing mechanisms enabling the transition to metastatic disease and pathologic pro-tumorigenic changes to the tumor microenvironment.
Precision medicine
Personalized treatment approaches using individual biomarkers from advanced imaging and multiomics technologies to improve outcomes.
Tumor immunology and immunotherapy
Understanding fundamental mechanisms underlying the immune response against breast cancer and developing novel therapies to maximally unleash its tumoricidal potential.
Tumor metabolism
Determining metabolic features and dependencies to inform treatment options and expand our understanding of disease drivers.
Clinical research
Prioritizing promising translational work that provides new clinical opportunities.
Community engagement
A defining goal of the center is to engage with our community and freely disseminate our findings to aid in the understanding of breast cancer, increase awareness of risk factors associated with disease development, and highlight new developments in treatment options.
Clinical trials
Research drives the development of clinical trials, which are essential for testing new therapies and treatment approaches. Participation in clinical trials gives patients access to cutting-edge treatments that could potentially improve their outcomes. Research efforts can lead to the development of supportive care strategies that improve the overall well-being of patients undergoing treatment.
Recent publications
- Edge SB. Invited Commentary: Path to Omission of Axillary Surgery after Neoadjuvant Therapy for Breast Cancer. J Am Coll Surg. 2024 Mar 1;238(3):311-312. doi: 10.1097/XCS.0000000000000892. Epub 2023 Dec 5. PMID: 38050969.
- Tozbikian G, Krishnamurthy S, Bui MM, Feldman M, Hicks DG, Jaffer S, Khoury T, Wei S, Wen H, Pohlmann P. Emerging Landscape of Targeted Therapy of Breast Cancers With Low Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 Protein Expression. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2024 Feb 1;148(2):242-255. doi: 10.5858/arpa.2022-0335-RA. PMID: 37014972.
- Bernicker E, Averbuch SD, Edge S, Kamboj J, Khuri FR, Pierce JY, Schiller J, Sirohi B, Thomas A, Moushey A, Phillips J, Hendricks C. Climate Change and Cancer Care: A Policy Statement From ASCO. JCO Oncol Pract. 2024 Feb;20(2):178-186. doi: 10.1200/OP.23.00637. Epub 2023 Nov 27. PMID: 38011607.
- Ochs-Balcom HM, Preus L, Du Z, Elston RC, Teerlink CC, Jia G, Guo X, Cai Q, Long J, Ping J, Li B, Stram DO, Shu XO, Sanderson M, Gao G, Ahearn T, Lunetta KL, Zirpoli G, Troester MA, Ruiz-Narváez EA, Haddad SA, Figueroa J, John EM, Bernstein L, Hu JJ, Ziegler RG, Nyante S, Bandera EV, Ingles SA, Mancuso N, Press MF, Deming SL, Rodriguez-Gil JL, Yao S, Ogundiran TO, Ojengbede O, Bolla MK, Dennis J, Dunning AM, Easton DF, Michailidou K, Pharoah PDP, Sandler DP, Taylor JA, Wang Q, O'Brien KM, Weinberg CR, Kitahara CM, Blot W, Nathanson KL, Hennis A, Nemesure B, Ambs S, Sucheston-Campbell LE, Bensen JT, Chanock SJ, Olshan AF, Ambrosone CB, Olopade OI; Ghana Breast Health Study Team; Conti DV, Palmer J, García-Closas M, Huo D, Zheng W, Haiman C. Novel breast cancer susceptibility loci under linkage peaks identified in African ancestry consortia. Hum Mol Genet. 2024 Jan 23:ddae002. doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddae002. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38263910.
- Benesch MGK, Tang X, Brindley DN, Takabe K. Autotaxin and Lysophosphatidate Signaling: Prime Targets for Mitigating Therapy Resistance in Breast Cancer. World J Oncol. 2024 Feb;15(1):1-13. doi: 10.14740/wjon1762. Epub 2024 Jan 20. PMID: 38274724; PMCID: PMC10807915.
- Lo Y, Lester SC, Ellis IO, Lanjewar S, Laurini J, Patel A, Bhattarai A, Ustun B, Harmon B, Kleer CG, Ross D, Amin A, Wang Y, Bradley R, Turashvili G, Zeng J, Baum J, Singh K, Hakima L, Harigopal M, Komforti M, Shin SJ, Abbott SE, Jaffer S, Badve SS, Khoury T, D'Alfonso TM, Ginter PS, Collins V, Towne W, Gan Y, Nassar A, Sahin AA, Flieder A, Aldrees R, Ngo MH, Edema U, Sapna F, Schnitt SJ, Fineberg SA. Identification of Glandular (Acinar)/Tubule Formation in Invasive Carcinoma of the Breast: A Study to Determine Concordance Using the World Health Organization Definition. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2024 Jan 20. doi: 10.5858/arpa.2023-0163-OA. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38244086.
- Hook C, Chatterjee U, Sheng H, Zhu Q, Robinson T, Roh JM, Laurent CA, Lee C, Delmerico J, Lo JC, Ambrosone CB, Kushi LH, Kwan ML, Yao S. A polygenic score associated with fracture risk in breast cancer patients treated with aromatase inhibitors. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2024 Jan 20;10(1):9. doi: 10.1038/s41523-024-00615-9. PMID: 38245540; PMCID: PMC10799916.
- Holling GA, Chavel CA, Sharda AP, Lieberman MM, James CM, Lightman SM, Tong JH, Qiao G, Emmons TR, Giridharan T, Hou S, Intlekofer AM, Higashi RM, Fan TWM, Lane AN, Eng KH, Segal BH, Repasky EA, Lee KP, Olejniczak SH. CD8+ T cell metabolic flexibility elicited by CD28-ARS2 axis-driven alternative splicing of PKM supports antitumor immunity. Cell Mol Immunol. 2024 Jan 18. doi: 10.1038/s41423-024-01124-2. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38233562.
- Nelson ED, Benesch MG, Wu R, Ishikawa T, Takabe K. High EIF4EBP1 expression reflects mTOR pathway activity and cancer cell proliferation and is a biomarker for poor breast cancer prognosis. Am J Cancer Res. 2024 Jan 15;14(1):227-242. PMID: 38323277; PMCID: PMC10839327.
- Wang W, Ling X, Wang R, Xiong H, Hu L, Yang Z, Wang H, Zhang Y, Wu W, Singh PK, Wang J, Li F, Li Q. Structure-Activity Relationship of FL118 Platform Position 7 Versus Position 9-Derived Compounds and Their Mechanism of Action and Antitumor Activity. J Med Chem. 2023 Dec 28;66(24):16888-16916. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c01589. Epub 2023 Dec 15. PMID: 38100041.
- Kwan ML, Valice E, Ergas IJ, Roh JM, Caan BJ, Cespedes Feliciano EM, Kolevska T, Hartman TJ, Quesenberry CP Jr, Ambrosone CB, Kushi LH. Alcohol consumption and prognosis and survival in breast cancer survivors: The Pathways Study. Cancer. 2023 Dec 15;129(24):3938-3951. doi: 10.1002/cncr.34972. Epub 2023 Aug 9. PubMed PMID: 37555890; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10840903.
- Tjader NP, Beer AJ, Ramroop J, Tai MC, Ping J, Gandhi T, Dauch C, Neuhausen SL, Ziv E, Sotelo N, Ghanekar S, Meadows O, Paredes M, Gillespie J, Aeilts A, Hampel H, Zheng W, Jia G, Hu Q, Wei L, Liu S, Ambrosone CB, Palmer JR, Carpten JD, Yao S, Stevens P, Ho WK, Pan JW, Fadda P, Huo D, Teo SH, McElroy JP, Toland AE. Association of ESR1 germline variants with TP53 somatic variants in breast tumors in a genome-wide study. medRxiv [Preprint]. 2023 Dec 6:2023.12.06.23299442. doi: 10.1101/2023.12.06.23299442. PMID: 38106140; PMCID: PMC10723566.
- Ergas IJ, Bradshaw PT, Cespedes Feliciano EM, Roh JM, Kwan ML, Laraia B, Madsen KA, Yao S, Thomsen C, Kushi LH. Hypothetical Interventions on Diet Quality and Lifestyle Factors to Improve Breast Cancer Survival: The Pathways Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 Dec 1;32(12):1716-1725. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-22-1216. PubMed PMID: 37721486; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10841733.
- Gelman IH. Metastasis suppressor genes in clinical practice: are they druggable? Cancer Metastasis Rev. 2023 Dec;42(4):1169-1188. doi: 10.1007/s10555-023-10135-w. Epub 2023 Sep 25. PMID: 37749308.
- Patel RK, Frankel L, Cardeiro M, Hansen W, Takabe K, Rashid OM. The Role of Crohn Disease on Breast Cancer Incidence: A Clinical Analysis. World J Oncol. 2023 Dec;14(6):457-463. doi: 10.14740/wjon1644. Epub 2023 Oct 21. PMID: 38022407; PMCID: PMC10681792.
- Vylegzhanina AV, Bespalov IA, Novototskaya-Vlasova KA, Hall BM, Gleiberman AS, Yu H, Leontieva OV, Leonova KI, Kurnasov OV, Osterman AL, Dy GK, Komissarov AA, Vasilieva E, Gehlhausen J, Iwasaki A, Ambrosone CB, Tsuji T, Matsuzaki J, Odunsi K, Andrianova EL, Gudkov AV. Cancer Relevance of Circulating Antibodies Against LINE-1 Antigens in Humans. Cancer Res Commun. 2023 Nov 8;3(11):2256-2267. doi: 10.1158/2767-9764.CRC-23-0289. PMID: 37870410; PMCID: PMC10631453.
- Roy AM, Patel A, Catalfamo K, Attwood K, Khoury T, Yao S, Gandhi S. Racial and Ethnic Disparity in Preoperative Chemosensitivity and Survival in Patients With Early-Stage Breast Cancer. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Nov 1;6(11):e2344517. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.44517. PMID: 37991763; PMCID: PMC10665980.
- Gandhi S, Opyrchal M, Grimm MJ, Slomba RT, Kokolus KM, Witkiewicz A, Attwood K, Groman A, Williams L, Tarquini ML, Wallace PK, Soh KT, Minderman H, Maguire O, O'Connor TL, Early AP, Levine EG, Kalinski P. Systemic infusion of TLR3-ligand and IFN-α in patients with breast cancer reprograms local tumor microenvironments for selective CTL influx. J Immunother Cancer. 2023 Nov;11(11):e007381. doi: 10.1136/jitc-2023-007381. PMID: 37963636; PMCID: PMC10649898.
- Roy AM, George A, Attwood K, Alaklabi S, Patel A, Omilian AR, Yao S, Gandhi S. Effect of neighborhood deprivation index on breast cancer survival in the United States. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2023 Nov;202(1):139-153. doi: 10.1007/s10549-023-07053-4. Epub 2023 Aug 5. PubMed PMID: 37542631; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10504126.
- Chen CS, Zirpoli G, Barlow WE, Budd GT, McKiver B, Pusztai L, Hortobagyi GN, Albain KS, Damaj MI, Godwin AK, Thompson A, Henry NL, Ambrosone CB, Stringer KA, Hertz DL. Vitamin D Insufficiency as a Risk Factor for Paclitaxel-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy in SWOG S0221. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2023 Nov;21(11):1172-1180.e3. doi: 10.6004/jnccn.2023.7062. PMID: 37935109.
- Wu R, Oshi M, Asaoka M, Yan L, Benesch MGK, Khoury T, Nagahashi M, Miyoshi Y, Endo I, Ishikawa T, Takabe K. Intratumoral Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs) are Associated With Cell Proliferation and Better Survival But Not Always With Chemotherapy Response in Breast Cancer. Ann Surg. 2023 Oct 1;278(4):587-597. doi: 10.1097/SLA.0000000000005954. Epub 2023 Jun 15. PubMed PMID: 37318852; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10481934.
- Allen CJ, Snyder RA, Horn DM, Hudson MF, Barber A, Smieliauskas F, Spears PA, Edge S, Greenup RA. Defining Priorities in Value-Based Cancer Care: Insights From the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology National Cooperative Group Survey. JCO Oncol Pract. 2023 Oct;19(10):932-938. doi: 10.1200/OP.23.00159. Epub 2023 Aug 31. PMID: 37651652; PMCID: PMC10615548.
- Takeshita T, Iwase H, Wu R, Ziazadeh D, Yan L, Takabe K. Development of a Machine Learning-Based Prognostic Model for Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer Using Nine-Gene Expression Signature. World J Oncol. 2023 Oct;14(5):406-422. doi: 10.14740/wjon1700. Epub 2023 Sep 20. PMID: 37869243; PMCID: PMC10588506.
- Hagerty BL, Takabe K. Biology of Mesothelin and Clinical Implications: A Review of Existing Literature. World J Oncol. 2023 Oct;14(5):340-349. doi: 10.14740/wjon1655. Epub 2023 Sep 20. PMID: 37869242; PMCID: PMC10588497.
- Moro K, Ichikawa H, Koyama Y, Abe S, Uchida H, Naruse K, Obata Y, Tsuchida J, Toshikawa C, Ikarashi M, Muneoka Y, Miura K, Tajima Y, Shimada Y, Kobayashi T, Sakata J, Takabe K, Wakai T. Oral Administration of Glucosylceramide Suppresses Tumor Growth by Affecting the Ceramide/Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Balance in Breast Cancer Tissue. World J Oncol. 2023 Oct;14(5):430-437. doi: 10.14740/wjon1656. Epub 2023 Sep 20. PMID: 37869237; PMCID: PMC10588502.
- Kumarasamy V, Gao Z, Zhao B, Jiang B, Rubin SM, Burgess K, Witkiewicz AK, Knudsen ES. PROTAC-mediated CDK degradation differentially impacts cancer cell cycles due to heterogeneity in kinase dependencies. Br J Cancer. 2023 Oct;129(8):1238-1250. doi: 10.1038/s41416-023-02399-4. Epub 2023 Aug 25. PMID: 37626264; PMCID: PMC10575895.
- Liu T, Zhou J, Chen Y, Fang J, Liu S, Frangou C, Wang H, Zhang J. Genome-Wide Characterization of TAZ Binding Sites in Mammary Epithelial Cells. Cancers (Basel). 2023 Sep 25;15(19). doi: 10.3390/cancers15194713. PubMed PMID: 37835407; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10571831.
- Witkiewicz AK, Schultz E, Wang J, Hamilton D, Levine E, O'Connor T, Knudsen ES. Determinants of response to CDK4/6 inhibitors in the real-world setting. NPJ Precis Oncol. 2023 Sep 13;7(1):90. doi: 10.1038/s41698-023-00438-0. PMID: 37704753; PMCID: PMC10499925.
- Ilozumba MN, Yaghjyan L, Datta S, Zhao J, Hong CC, Lunetta KL, Zirpoli G, Bandera EV, Palmer JR, Yao S, Ambrosone CB, Cheng TD. mTOR pathway candidate genes and energy intake interaction on breast cancer risk in Black women from the Women's Circle of Health Study. Eur J Nutr. 2023 Sep;62(6):2593-2604. doi: 10.1007/s00394-023-03176-y. Epub 2023 May 20. PubMed PMID: 37209192; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10695182.
In the news
The Breast Cancer Research Center serves as a ‘public square’ to enable discussions between clinicians and researchers alike about their latest and greatest findings. It encourages us all to ask how we can work better as a concerted team toward a shared goal – curing breast cancer.Thomas O'Connor, PhD, Breast Cancer Research Center Coordinator
Contact us
Elm & Carlton Streets
Buffalo, NY 14263
Thomas.O'Connor@RoswellPark.org