Research

I have set up a research team devoted to cancer genetic studies and biomarker development, in particular in male urological cancers. The mission of the research team is to reduce mortality and morbidity of cancer patients by understanding cancer development and progression mechanisms and facilitating precision medicine through the development of efficient cancer detection, prognostic and treatment response prediction/monitoring biomarkers.

Our past work has been mainly focused on identification of genetic alterations and genetic mechanisms in cancer development, progression and therapeutic response. Recently, our research work moved into circulation biomarker development, including CTCs, exosome and other cells, for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and prediction/monitoring of cancer progression and therapeutic response.

There are currently two main research areas of interest:

• Biomarker discovery and clinical applications, focusing on circulating biomarkers (CTCs, exosomes and other cancer associated circulating cells) for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and prediction/monitoring of cancer progression and therapeutic response.
• Mechanisms of prostate cancer metastasis and therapeutic resistance.

Other Activities

• Senior Editor: American Journal of Cancer Research
• Editorial Board Member: The Open Breast Cancer Journal
• Editorial Board Member: Journal of Cancer Research Updates
• Scientific assessment committee member: France national cancer research programme Canceropole (2007-2014)
• Research grant reviewer for funding bodies, such as British Medical Research Council (MRC), British National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), UK Prostate Action, Prostate Cancer Research Charity, National Cancer Institute of France, International Association of Cancer Research, Hong Kong Research Grants Council
• Referee of scientific journals such as Oncogene, J Path, Gene Chromosome Cancer, Br J Cancer, International J Cancer, Carcinogenesis, PloS One, BMC Cancer, Histopathology, Clinical Cancer Research and America Journal of Pathology
• Member of prostate cancer ICGC consortium
  Member of PRACTICAL prostate cancer predisposition study international consortium
• Active Member of American Association for Cancer Research
• Honorable Professor, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China
• Honorable Professor, Naning Medical University, China
• Visiting Professor, Zhengzhou University Medical College, China

Major Funding

• 2019-2020- CRUK Cancer Early Detection Primer award, 'Exploring platelet miRNA as a novel cost-effective non-invasive liquid biopsy approach to improve prostate cancer diagnosis,' £97,242
• 2017-2021- Angle Europe PLC, "The prognostic value of circulating megakaryocytes for cancer patients" £278,000
• 2015-2021- The Orchid Cancer Appeal, "Circulating tumour cell study and biomarker identification in prostate cancer" £750,000
• 2008-2011- Medical Research Council, Associated genes in prostate cancer, £303,225
  
  

Recent Publications

Differential cross-section measurements for the electroweak production of dijets in association with a Z boson in proton–proton collisions at ATLAS Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. European Physical Journal C (2021) 81(7)

Publisher Correction: Trans-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of prostate cancer identifies new susceptibility loci and informs genetic risk prediction. Conti DV, Darst BF, Moss LC et al. Nat Genet (2021) (2)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33473200

The Identification of Plasma Exosomal miR-423-3p as a Potential Predictive Biomarker for Prostate Cancer Castration-Resistance Development by Plasma Exosomal miRNA Sequencing Guo T, Wang Y, Jia J et al. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology (2021) 8(7)

The transcriptomic landscape of prostate cancer development and progression: An integrative analysis Marzec J, Ross-Adams H, Pirrò S et al. Cancers (2021) 13(7) 1-24

Trans-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of prostate cancer identifies new susceptibility loci and informs genetic risk prediction Conti DV, Darst BF, Moss LC et al. Nature Genetics (2021) 53(7) 65-75

An integrative multi-omics analysis to identify candidate DNA methylation biomarkers related to prostate cancer risk Wu L, Yang Y, Guo X et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Author Correction: Retrospective evaluation of whole exome and genome mutation calls in 746 cancer samples (Nature Communications, (2020), 11, 1, (4748), 10.1038/s41467-020-18151-y) Bailey MH, Meyerson WU, Dursi LJ et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Genomic analysis of male puberty timing highlights shared genetic basis with hair colour and lifespan Hollis B, Day FR, Busch AS et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Retrospective evaluation of whole exome and genome mutation calls in 746 cancer samples Bailey MH, Meyerson WU, Dursi LJ et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Sex differences in oncogenic mutational processes Li CH, Prokopec SD, Sun RX et al. Nature Communications (2020) 11(7)

Team

Postdoctoral Researchers
Xueying Mao, Elzbieta Stankiewicz

PhD Students
Tanyu Guo, Caitlin Davis, Yeuzhou Zhang

Research Technician
Edwina Burke

Biography

Education