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The main focus of my research is to improve targeted therapy for cancer, and to develop new rational strategies for combination of targeted agents. In the clinic, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-targeting antibodies or small kinase inhibitor molecules are widely used to treat patients with gastrointestinal (GI), breast, head and neck, and lung cancers. Unfortunately, the clinical efficacy of these agents is limited by intrinsic primary and acquired resistance factors. Our lab has initially focused on development of new treatment strategies utilizing a systematic synthetic lethal screening approach to identify new signaling proteins that can be blocked simultaneously with EGFR and improve anti-cancer activity of the EGFR drugs. A number of potentially therapeutically exploitable targets have been identified and their mode of action is being assessed.

1. Astsaturov IA, Gordon RA, Cescon TP, Cheng JD, Engstrom PF, Lewis NL, Bromberg M, Weiner LM, Meropol NJ, Cohen SJ. Phase II and Coagulation Study of Bevacizumab with or without Docetaxel in Patients with Previously Treated Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma. Am J Clinical Oncology. Forthcoming 2009.
2. Hopper-Borge EA, Nasto RE, Ratushny V, Weiner LM, Golemis EA, Astsaturov I. Mechanisms of tumor resistance to EGFR-targeted therapies. Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets. 2009 Mar;13(3):339-62. PubMed
3. Astsaturov I, Cohen RB, Harari PM. Clinical application of EGFR inhibitors in head and neck squamous cell cancer. Cancer Treat Res. 2008;139:135-52.PubMed
4. Spaner DE, Astsaturov I, Vogel T, Petrella T, Elias I, Burdett-Radoux S, Verma S, Iscoe N, Hamilton P, Berinstein NL. Enhanced viral and tumor immunity with intranodal injection of canary pox viruses expressing the melanoma antigen, gp100. Cancer. 2006;106:890-9. PubMed
5. Astsaturov I, Teresa P, Bagriacik U, de Benedette M, Uger R, Lumber G, Berinstein N, Elias I, Iscoe N, Hammond C, Hamilton P, Spaner DE. Amplification of virus-induced anti-melanoma T cell reactivity by high dose Interferon-a2b: implications for cancer vaccines. Clin Cancer Res. 2003;9:4347-55.