SCIENCE TALK: Respiratory Virus Infections can Awaken Sleeping Cancer Cells

The speaker will review experimental and epidemiological data showing how infections with the viruses that cause flu or COVID-19 can promote the awakening of dormant cancer cells in the lungs. We will explore some of the mechanisms involved, and how we might be able to manipulate key players to reduce the risks for cancer survivors who experience viral lung infections. Finally, we will discuss what these studies mean for the public, particularly for cancer survivors, and the importance of further research.

Speaker Dr. James DeGregori is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and Deputy Director of the University of Colorado Cancer Center. He has degrees from the University of Texas at Austin (B.A. Microbiology) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD Biology), and received postdoctoral training at Duke University. He holds the Courtenay and Lucy Patten Davis Endowed Chair in Lung Cancer Research, and is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Aging And Cancer. His lab studies the evolution of cancer, with a focus on how aging, smoking, Down Syndrome, and other insults influence cancer initiation, progression, and responses to therapy.