Biography

My research interests over the last two decades have been in both clinical and translational research in urologic cancer, most specifically in transitional carcinoma of the bladder and in localized prostatic carcinoma. My main area of interest in prostate cancer has been randomized protocols studying neoadjuvant hormone therapy in combination with radiation therapy for localized prostatic carcinoma. RTOG protocols have been using conventional external beam radiation therapy, conformal external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy. We have also set up a National Quality Assurance Brachytherapy center to correlate outcome with implant quality. The translational research program in prostate cancer has used multivariate analysis of outcome both with PSA endpoints and with clinical endpoints studying p53, WAF-1, ploidy, and recently thymosin beta-15. Our interest in muscle-invading bladder cancer has been in organ preservation done selectively depending on initial response using tri-modality therapy. These protocols which include innovative regimens of including transurethral tumor resection and hyperfractionated radiation therapy and concurrent chemotherapy with Cisplatin and/or Cisplatin plus Taxol. These regimens lead to selective bladder preservation by determination to whether or not the patient is a complete responder to this therapy and more recently these protocols have also included systemic adjuvant multi-drug chemotherapy regimens as a Phase I/II protocols. Translational research within these bladder cancer protocols include studying p53, RB and WAF-1. We are also the lead member of PROG - Proton Radiation Oncology Group - and have completed two Phase III randomized trials of conformal protons and photons evaluating total dose with regard to treatment outcome. The present protocol is evaluating 70.2CGE vs. 79.2CGE. All these studies are supported by the NCI.