Publications by authors named "Mohammed N Al-Hallak"

Background: Cannabis (CAN) use has risen significantly over the last few decades. CAN has potent immunosuppressive properties, which could antagonize the effect of immunotherapy (IO). The impact of CAN use on clinical cancer outcomes remains unclear.

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Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal malignancy, with limited therapeutic options. Here, we evaluated the role of regulator of chromosome condensation 1 (RCC1) in PDAC. RCC1 functions as a guanine exchange factor for GTP-binding nuclear protein Ran (Ran) GTPase and is involved in nucleocytoplasmic transport.

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Health disparities present a barrier to successful oncology treatment. The potential for precision oncology to reduce health disparities has not previously been analyzed. We performed a retrospective analysis of 12,627 patients from six major cancer centers whose tumors underwent molecular testing at Caris Life Sciences between 2010 and 2020.

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Neuregulin 1 () fusions are oncogenic drivers that have been detected in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and other solid tumors. fusions are rare, occurring in less than 1% of solid tumors. Patients with fusion positive (NRG1+) cancer have limited therapeutic options.

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Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal malignancy with limited therapeutic options. Here we for the first time evaluated the role of regulator of chromosome condensation 1 (RCC1) in PDAC subsistence and drug resistance. RCC1 expression was found to be elevated in PDAC tissues in comparison with normal pancreatic tissues and was linked to poor prognosis.

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Purpose: Gastric cancer is the 5th most common malignancy worldwide. As early detection increases and treatments for gastric cancer improve, the number of gastric cancer survivors grows.

Methods: Here, we review the diagnosis and management of gastric cancer and discuss important considerations for gastric cancer survivorship including cancer surveillance, weight loss, malnutrition, fatigue, specific complications related to surgery and radiation, quality of life in gastric cancer survivorship, health behavior, and models of survivorship.

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Primary squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the liver is quite rare, and to our knowledge, very few cases have been reported in the literature. The exact pathogenesis of the disease is unestablished; however, it is mostly reported to be associated with hepatic cyst, Caroli's disease, hepatolithiasis, hepatic cirrhosis, and hepatic teratoma. We report a case of a 50-year-old woman with no prior medical history initially, who presented with postprandial epigastric and right upper quadrant pain that continued to worsen and was associated with early satiety, nausea, and weight loss of 25 pounds over 2 months, which prompted further evaluation by her primary care physician.

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KRASG12C inhibitors, such as sotorasib and adagrasib, have revolutionized cancer treatment for patients with KRASG12C-mutant tumors. However, patients receiving these agents as monotherapy often develop drug resistance. To address this issue, we evaluated the combination of the PAK4 inhibitor KPT9274 and KRASG12C inhibitors in preclinical models of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

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Background: RET fusions are driver alterations in cancer and are most commonly found in non-small cell lung cancer and well-differentiated thyroid cancer. However, RET fusion have been reported in other solid tumors.

Material And Methods: A retrospective analysis of RET+ solid malignancies identified by targeted RNA sequencing and whole transcriptome sequencing of clinical tumor samples performed at Caris Life Science (Phoenix, AZ).

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Unlabelled: KRASG12C inhibitors have revolutionized the treatment landscape for cancer patients harboring the G12C mutant isoform of KRAS. With the recent FDA approval of sotorasib and adagrasib, patients now have access to more promising treatment options. However, patients who receive these agents as a monotherapy usually develop drug resistance.

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Unlabelled: The identification of molecules that can bind covalently to KRAS G12C and lock it in an inactive GDP-bound conformation has opened the door to targeting KRAS G12C selectively. These agents have shown promise in preclinical tumor models and clinical trials. FDA has recently granted approval to sotorasib for KRAS G12C mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

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Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 () is a proto-oncogene that, when mutated or overexpressed, plays an important role in oncogenesis. The landscape of -positive breast cancer has changed dramatically over the past 2 decades with the FDA approval of a growing number of agents (antibodies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and antibody-drug conjugates) targeting the receptor. inhibition has also been approved for -positive gastric cancer.

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Kirsten Rat Sarcoma (KRAS) is a master oncogene involved in cellular proliferation and survival and is the most commonly mutated oncogene in all cancers. Activating KRAS mutations are present in over 90% of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cases and are implicated in tumor initiation and progression. Although KRAS is a critical oncogene, and therefore an important therapeutic target, its therapeutic inhibition has been very challenging, and only recently specific mutant KRAS inhibitors have been discovered.

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Background: Nuclear protein transport is essential in guiding the traffic of important proteins and RNAs between the nucleus and cytoplasm. Export of proteins from the nucleus is mostly regulated by Exportin 1 (XPO1). In cancer, XPO1 is almost universally hyperactive and can promote the export of important tumor suppressors to the cytoplasm.

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Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive malignance with high mortality. The lack of early diagnosis and effective therapy contributes to the high mortality of this deadly disease. For a long time being, the alterations in coding RNAs have been considered as major targets for diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer.

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Metastatic pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNET) remain an unmet clinical problem. Chronologic treatment in PNETs includes observation (watchful protocol), surgery, targeted therapy, and chemotherapy. However, increasing evidence illustrates that the outcomes of targeted therapeutic options for the treatment of advanced PNETs show minimal response.

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Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death among men and women in the United States, and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) accounts for more than 90% of pancreatic cancer cases. PDAC is one of the most lethal gastrointestinal malignancies with an overall five-year survival rate of ~10%. Developing effective therapeutic strategies against pancreatic cancer is a great challenge.

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Liquid biopsy is now considered a valuable diagnostic tool for advanced metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In NSCLC, circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis has been shown to increase the chances of identifying the presence of targetable mutations and has been adopted by many clinicians owing to its low risk. Serial monitoring of ctDNA may also help assess the treatment response or for monitoring relapse.

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Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are rare neoplasms arising from the interstitial cell of Cajal in the gastrointestinal tract. Two thirds of GIST in adult patients have c-Kit mutation and smaller fractions have platelet derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRA) mutation. Surgery is the only curative treatment for localized disease.

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Gastric cancer remains a major unmet clinical problem with over 1 million new cases worldwide. It is the fourth most commonly occurring cancer in men and the seventh most commonly occurring cancer in women. A major fraction of gastric cancer has been linked to variety of pathogenic infections including but not limited to Helicobacter pylori (H.

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Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains an unmet clinical problem in urgent need of newer molecularly driven treatment modalities. Calcium signals, particularly those associated with calcium release-activated calcium (CRAC) channels, are known to influence the development, growth, and metastasis of many cancers. This is the first study investigating the impact of CRAC channel inhibition on PDAC cell lines and patient-derived tumor models.

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Mutations in Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) are among the most common aberrations in cancer, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The lack of an ideal small molecule binding pocket in the KRAS protein and its high affinity towards the abundance of cellular guanosine triphosphate (GTP) renders the design of specific small molecule drugs challenging. Despite efforts, KRAS remains a challenging therapeutic target.

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Paraneoplastic syndromes in lung malignancies can lead to leukemoid reaction with an elevation of eosinophils, neutrophils, and monocytes. The elevation of these three lineages together due to paraneoplastic syndromes has not been described in literature yet.

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