The TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank at Massachusetts General Hospital
In January 2013, TargetCancer provided a $30,000 grant to fund the continuing operations of The TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank at Massachusetts General Hospital. Created by TargetCancer in 2012, this innovative program is a collaborative effort between laboratory researchers, surgeons, pathologists, and medical oncologists to generate new cholangiocarcinoma cell lines and patient-derived xenografts. These cell lines are quickly subjected to a series of studies, including understanding the biology and genomic makeup of individual tumors, studying the roles of specific mutated genes, and testing the efficacy of new drug treatments. In addition, the xenografts are used for further testing in vivo.
Under the leadership of Nabeel Bardeesy, PhD and MGH surgeon Cristina Ferrone, MD, the TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank has expanded to five medical centers in just one year, including:
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• Massachusetts General Hospital
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• Lahey Clinic
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• University of Massachusetts
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Whereas the excess tumor tissue not required for diagnosis is normally discarded following surgery, under this Cell Line Bank program the tissue is now rushed to Dr. Bardeesy’s laboratory and used to test important research questions.
To illustrate the scale of the problem prior to the creation of the TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank, the Center for Molecular Therapeutics at Massachusetts General Hospital had a collection of more than 1000 cell lines obtained from the main cell line repository in the United States (the ATTC), including more than 200 lung cancer lines, whereas only two were cholangiocarcinoma lines.
The TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank has already created a collection of cholangiocarcinoma cell lines that is larger than that available from any international repository. The creation of new, well documented North American patient derived cell lines will increase dramatically in 2013 with the participation of more medical centers. This robust resource represents a major unmet need in the field that will serve the cholangiocarcinoma research community and patients.
Want to learn more?
Click here for more information about the need for cell lines, and why they are important to cholangiocarcinoma research.
TargetCancer’s 2013 funding of the TargetCancer Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Line Bank was supported by the generosity of Bob and Carolyn Davis, and Rev. Martha Leahy and the 1st Congregational Church of Saugus, MA, who collaborated to plan and hold the Dave Webster/TargetCancer Community for a Cure in Saugus, MA in September 2012. This two-day event was held in memory of Dave Webster, who lost his battle with cholangiocarcinoma in December 2011. The event attracted over 500 participants and raised more than $27,000, all of which was directly donated to TargetCancer.
