Department Affiliation: Primary: Urology; Secondary: Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences and Oncology
Degree: Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Rank: Professor and Director of Urology Research
Telephone Number: 410-502-3137
Fax Number: 410-502-9336
E-mail address: rgetzen1@jhmi.edu
Johns Hopkins Hospital Address: Marburg 121, 600 N. Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21287
Cancer Biomarkers; Proteomic Analysis of Nuclear Structure; Cancer Therapy Utilizing Nanotechnology
Dr. Getzenberg'slaboratory investigates translational aspects of cancer focusing on elements ofcancer pathobiology that have direct clinical implications. His primaryresearch interest is the study of one of the hallmarks of the cancer cell,altered nuclear structure. Specifically, what components of the nuclear scaffolding, the nuclear matrix, are different when comparing the cancer cell to its normal counterpart, and what role these components play both directly and indirectly in transformation. Proteomic analysis of signatures of thecancer process are permitting the developing of specific biomarkers for these diseases. Current research in Dr. Getzenberg's laboratory focuses on understanding the role of the nuclear matrix in the pathobiology of urologic cancers and in developing cancer biomarkers focusing on these diseases. This work has been extended to include analysis of gene expression patterns associated with BPH and prostate cancer and in developing novel biomarkers and treatment strategies based on this approach. In addition, Dr. Getzenberg's laboratory studies new therapeutic approaches for cancer. One of the more recent approaches has been to utilize nanotechnology to focus heat on cancer cells. This heating makes the cancer cells more susceptible to conventional therapies. This approach is multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional.
Representative Publications:
- Myers-Irvin, J., Van Le, T., and Getzenberg, R.H. Mechanistic analysis of the role of BLCA-4 in bladder cancer pathobiology, Cancer Research 65:7145-7150, 2005. Pub Med Reference
Van Le, T-S.T., Miller, R., Barder, T., Babjuk, M., Potter, D., and Getzenberg, R.H. Highly specific urine-based marker of bladder cancer. Urology, 66:(6), 1256-1260, 2005. Pub Med Reference
Coffey, D., Getzenberg, R.H., and DeWeese, T. Hyperthermic Biology and Cancer Therapies A Hypothesis for the “Lance Armstrong Effect”. JAMA, 296(4), 445-449, 2006. Pub Med Reference
Cannon, G.W., Mullins, C., Lucia, M.S., Hayward, S.W., Lin, V., Liu, B. C.-S., Slawin, K., Rubin, M.A., and Getzenberg, R.H. A Preliminary Study of JM-27: A Serum Marker That Can Specifically Identify Men with Symptomatic Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia. The Journal of Urology 177(2), 610-614, 2007. Pub Med Reference
Leman, E.S., Cannon, G.W., Trock, B.J., Sokoll, L.J., Chan, D.w., Mangold, L., Partin, A.W., and Getzenberg, R.H. EPCA-2: a highly specific serum marker for prostate cancer. Urology, 69(4), 714-720, 2007. Pub Med Reference
Leman, E., Schoen, R., Magheli, A., Sokoll, L., Chan, D., and Getzenberg R.H. Evaluation of Colon Cancer-Specific Antigen 2 as a potential Serum Marker for Colorectal Cancer. Clinical Cancer Research, 14(5), 1349-1354, 2008. Pub Med Reference
Inoue, T., Leman, E., Yeater, D., and Getzenberg, R.H. The potential role of purine-rich element binding protein (PUR) alpha as a novel treatment target for hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Prostate. 68(10). 1048-56, 2008. Pub Med Reference
Other graduate programs in which Dr. Getzenberg participates:
