Main description:

Internationally renowned basic and clinical scientists provide an account of our best current understanding of the genetics of cancer. These authoritative contributors describe in detail each of the known molecular mechanisms governing neoplastic transformation in the breast, prostate, lung, liver, colon, and skin, and in the leukemias and lymphomas. Their discussion illuminates both recent developments and established concepts in epidemiology, molecular techniques, oncogenesis, and mutation mechanisms, as well as the chemical, viral, and physical mechanisms in cancer induction.

Contents:

Part I. Introduction

Cancer Epidemiology: Incidence and Etiology of Human Neoplasms
William B. Coleman and Gregory J. Tsongalis

Part II. Essential Concepts in Molecular Biology

Essential Concepts and Techniques in Molecular Biology
Sharon Collins Presnell

Part III. Molecular Themes in Oncogenesis

Cancer Genes
John J. Reinartz

Positive Mediators of Cell Proliferation in Neoplastic Transformation
James N. Welch and Susan A. Chrysogelos

Inactivation of Negative Growth Regulators During Neoplastic Transformation
Kara N. Smolinski and Stephen J. Meltzer

Part IV. Mechanisms of Mutation

The Role of Genomic Instability in the Development of Human Cancer
William B. Coleman and Gregory J. Tsongalis

Chromosomes and Chromosomal Instability in Human Cancer
Takashi Shimamoto and Kazuma Ohyashiki

Hereditary Cancer
Bruce M. Boman, Lael Melchert, and Jeremy Z. Fields

Part V. Etiology of Human Cancers

Evolution of Research in Cancer Etiology
Lorenzo Tomatis and James Huff

Cellular Responses to Chemical Carcinogens
Edward L. Loechler, Bryan Henry, and Kwang-Young Seo

Physical Agents in Human Carcinogenesis
Cynthia R. Timblin, Yvonne Janssen-Heininger, and Brooke T. Mossman

Viral Mechanisms of Human Carcinogenesis
Felix Hoppe-Seyler and Karin Butz

Part VI. Human Tumor Systems

The Molecular Biology of Colorectal Carcinoma: Importance of the Wg/Wnt Signal Transduction Pathway
J. Milburn Jessup, Gary Gallick, and Bo Liu

Molecular Genetic Alterations in Primary Hepatocellular Neoplasms: Hepatocellular Adenoma, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, and Hepatoblastoma
Joe W. Grisham

The Molecular Basis of Breast Carcinogenesis
April Charpentier and C. Marcelo Aldaz

The Molecular Basis of Prostate Carcinogenesis
Allen C. Gao and John T. Isaacs

The Molecular Basis of Lung Carcinogenesis
Kwun M. Fong, Yoshitaka Sekido, and John D. Minna

The Molecular Basis of Skin Carcinogenesis
Caterina Missero, Mariarosaria D'Errico, Gian Paolo Dotto, and Eugenia Dogliotti

The Molecular Biology of Leukemias
Arnold B. Gelb and L. Jeffrey Medeiros

Molecular Genetic Applications to the Diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
Gregory J. Tsongalis and William N. Rezuke

Part VII. Future Directions

Cancer Genetic Counseling
Katherine Schneider, Kristen Shannon, Anu Chittenden, Elaine Hiller, and Stephanie Kieffer

Molecular Genetic Diagnosis of Inherited Cancer Predisposition
Elizabeth M. Petty and Beverly M. Yashar

Novel Molecular Targets for Cancer Drug Discovery
John K. Buolamwini

Gene Therapy in the Treatment of Human Cancer
Jesus Gomez-Navarro, Guadalupe Bilbao, and David T. Curiel