Lily Wu, MD, PhD

Dr. Lily Wu's research is aimed at developing a better understanding of cancer biology and improving gene-based therapy. She and her colleagues have utilized the efficient gene transfer property of adenovirus to create tissue-targeted therapy for cancer. By applying this targeted gene-expression approach to molecular imaging, metastatic lesions were detected in living tumor-bearing mice. To gain a better understanding of metastasis, the advanced and deadly stage of cancer, she and her colleagues are actively investigating tumor blood and lymphatic vasculatures that serve as routes of tumor cell spread. A variety of therapeutic approaches are being implemented in prostate and breast cancer models. In one strategy, they are modifying adenovirus and herpes virus to mediate cancer-specific lysis. Molecular imaging techniques such as optical charge-coupled devices (CCD) imaging and positron emission tomography (PET) are fundamental tools of their investigation. Wu's ultimate goal is to create potent and effective cancer-targeted therapy to diagnose and treat advanced stage and metastatic cancer.

Jiang ZK, Sato M, Wei LH, Kao C, Wu L. Androgen-independent molecular imaging vectors to detect castration-resistant and metastatic prostate cancer. Cancer Res. 2011 Oct 1;71(19):6250-60. Epub 2011 Sep 20

Pouliot F, Karanikolas BD, Johnson M, Sato M, Priceman SJ, Stout D, Sohn J, Satyamurthy N, Dekernion JB, Wu L. In vivo imaging of intraprostatic-specific gene transcription by PET. J Nucl Med. 2011 May;52(5):784-91. Epub 2011 Apr 15

Priceman SJ, Sung JL, Shaposhnik Z, Burton JB, Torres-Collado AX, Moughon DL, Johnson M, Lusis AJ, Cohen DA, Iruela-Arispe ML, Wu L. Targeting distinct tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells by inhibiting CSF-1 receptor: combating tumor evasion of antiangiogenic therapy. Blood. 2010 Feb 18;115(7):1461-71. Epub 2009 Dec 11

Huyn ST, Burton JB, Sato M, Carey M, Gambhir SS, Wu L. A potent, imaging adenoviral vector driven by the cancer-selective mucin-1 promoter that targets breast cancer metastasis. Clin Cancer Res. 2009 May 1;15(9):3126-34. Epub 2009 Apr 14

Karanikolas BD, Figueiredo ML, Wu L. Polycomb group protein enhancer of zeste 2 is an oncogene that promotes the neoplastic transformation of a benign prostatic epithelial cell line. Mol Cancer Res. 2009 Sep;7(9):1456-65. Epub 2009 Sep 1