journal publication
The second Fibrolamellar Cancer Foundation Scientific Summit was held in Stamford, CT, USA, in November 2017. The goals of this meeting were to gather a diverse set of investigators, stimulate new collaborations, and devise new ways to inspire additional interest in the field. This meeting summary outlines the work supported by the Foundation and presented …
This paper discusses a case study of a patient in her mid 30s whose FLC had recurred and persisted despite resection and multiple lines of treatment, including use of an immune checkpoint inhibitor (atezolizumab – an anti-PD-L1 agent). Following molecular profiling of her tumor and computational analysis of the tumor’s transcriptome (RNA), a combination of …
This publication retrospectively analyzes the clinicopathological factors and treatments affecting overall survival in FLC. Using the National Cancer Database, it identified 496 patients diagnosed with FLC between 2004 and 2015. Of those patients, resection was performed on 254 (51.2%), liver-directed therapy on 13 (2.6%), and liver transplantation on 15 (3.0%) patients. Median overall survival times …
The purpose of this study was to examine the role of human genomic regions, called cancer-enhancing genomic regions or aggressive liver cancer domains (CEGRs/ALCDs), in the development of FLC. In previous investigations of the mutation-independent pathways of pediatric liver cancer hepatoblastoma, researchers identified CEGRs/ALCDs that control the expression of a group of cancer-causing genes. In …
Fibrolamellar carcinoma (FLC) is a cancer that doesn’t respond well to current treatments. In past research, the Rockefeller University team conducted a broad-based, small-molecule drug screen to identify potential drug candidates to use against FLC. That effort identified several potential drugs including napabucasin, panobinostat, irinotecan (a topoisomerase I inhibitor), and navitoclax (an inhibitor of the …
This paper reports an important research tool, the first example of a tumor line from a human fibrolamellar carcinoma (FLC) patient that can be maintained and expanded by growing the tumors in special mice with a compromised immune system. Such so-called “patient-derived xenografts” (PDX) can be used to provide large amounts of tumor tissue for …
This publication summarizes the current understanding of fibrolamellar carcinoma based on a review of currently available literature. It outlines the epidemiology, pathology, and biology of FLC, plus provides a high-level overview of the evidence supporting existing therapies for the disease — including surgical, radiotherapy, interventional radiology and systemic treatments. The full article can be read …
Proteomics studies assess the composition, structure, expression, and the interactions and connections between proteins at an overall level in tissue. Metabolomics studies focus on characterizing metabolites, the small molecules generated by specific cellular processes. Both types of studies can yield valuable insights into the complex biochemical pathways, networks, and molecular systems that control important cell …
This publication describes the results of the first large scale screening of known drugs and compounds for their effectiveness against FLC. It identified six new PDX lines derived by direct implantation of tumor specimens, both from the liver (one primary and one recurrent tumor) and metastases. These facilitated the first reported large-scale screening of compounds …