The Fundamentals of Cancer Biology

Cancer is not one single disease, but an umbrella term to describe hundreds of unique ever-changing diseases. This course seeks to help students understand the hallmarks of cancer previously established by Douglas Hanahan and Robert Weinberg. These hallmarks are organizing principles for understanding the complex nature of these diseases. We will look at topics such as invasion/metastasis, cellular immortality, evading cell death, abnormal metabolism, genome instability, avoiding immune destruction, and more.

List of Learning Outcomes:

• Understand how each hallmark of cancer contributes to the disease as a whole.

• Think critically about cell signaling pathways.

• Gain an appreciation for the complexities of cancer biology.

• Explain possible treatments or therapies to combat each hallmark.

• Understand how mutations at a cellular level both can increase proliferative signaling and decrease suppressors.

• Comprehend how tumor cells can evolve a variety of strategies to circumvent cell death.

• Understand what it means for tumors to be immortal and how that occurs.

• Understand how tumors form new blood vessels and why that is important for their survival.

• Interpret the cancer immunoediting process.

• Discern the complexities of cancer metabolism.

• Actively engage with scientific research presentations.