Syllabus

Module I. Introduction to Cancer: Cancer initiation, causes, promotion, & progression. Different cell types and their cancers, rare cancers. Cancer registry. [5hrs]
Module II. Genes and Cancer Cell Signalling: Cellular proto-oncogenes, (Growth factors, growth factor receptors), Transcription factors, Retroviral oncogenes, Tumor suppressor genes, Altered signaling and transcriptional circuits.
DNA viruses/cell immortalization, DNA methylation, epigenetic silencing of suppressor genes. [9hrs]

Module III. Cancer cell intrinsic mechanism: Cell cycle and regulation genome instability, Apoptosis senescence and the DNA damage/repair response multistep tumorigenesis.[5hrs]

Module IV. Tumor Immunology: Introduction, immune evasion of cancer cells, TAM, CAF, cancers of the immune cells and their molecular mechanism.[5hrs]

Module V. Biological Models in Cancer Research: Cell Lines, Tumor Organoid Models, animal models. [4hrs]

Module VI. Diagnosis and Cancer Therapy: Latest diagnosis modalities for cancer, Chemotherapy, Radiation Therapy, Immune Therapy, Gene therapy, Antibody based therapies, personalized medicine, Resistance in cancers. [5 hrs]

Module VII. Cancer Stem Cells: Cancer stem cells and relapse, Cancer therapy associated health complications. [3hrs]

To equip the students with the understanding of the principal phenotypic characteristics of cancer cells, with an understanding of genetic and epigenetic landscape of cancer cells.

To make the students aware of the molecular reasons for the development of cancer

To develop the knowledge of the immunological response due to cancers as well as cancers in immune cells

To discuss the current diagnosis and treatment modalities in cancer

1. To learn and identify different hallmarks of cancer and the molecular mechanism of the disease.
2. To understand the regulation and contribution of tumor cell intrinsic and cell-autonomous factors in the pathogenesis of cancer.
3. To understand, identify and use the right cell line or biological model for the purpose of research in cancer biology.
4. To learn and understand various diagnosis and treatment methods for cancer.
5. To understand the reasons for the resistance in cancer and use that knowledge to target personalized treatment for cancers.

M. Khan and S. Pelengaris, The Molecular Biology of Cancer, Wiley- Blackwell

Kleinsmith, Principles of Cancer Biology, Pearson

L.Pecorino, Molecular Biology of Cancer: Mechanisms, Targets, and Therapeutics, Oxford University Press

Robert Weinberg, The Biology of Cancer, Garland Science , 2nd Edition