| |
|
| |
nowing the order and manner of genetic events involved
in head and neck cancers has obvious appeal. Health professionals and patients
can now look forward to confronting cancer on the molecular level -- where
it originates -- instead of waiting to deal with its aftermath. It may one
day be possible to detect the disease at its earliest stage using biomarkers
found in blood and saliva; develop better tests for tracking the progression
of cancer; and design therapies based on fixing or replacing mutated genes.
Through its grants program -- including the Oral Cancer Research Centers
co-funded with the National Cancer Institute -- and in projects conducted
on the NIH campus, NIDCR is seizing the opportunity to explore the range
of topics related to oral and pharyngeal cancer. This article describes
only a few of NIDCR's ongoing efforts and a handful of findings by NIDCR researchers
and others in this burgeoning field.