Hui-Wen Lo, PhD
Associate Professor
Division of Surgical Sciences
Department of Surgery
NCI-Designated Researcher

Duke University Medical Center
103 Research Drive
433A MSRB I
Box 3156 DUMC
Durham, NC 27710

Office: 919-668-6792
Lab: 919-684-5391
Fax: 919-684-5483
E-mail: huiwen.lo@duke.edu

The primary interest of my research program is to better understand the biology of cancerous cells, including those of the brain and breast. As deregulated signal transduction pathways are a major signature of aggressive cancers, my research goals are:

• To characterize the nature of cancer signaling pathways
• Understand the extent to which they cross-talk and interact
• Use the newly obtained information to facilitate the future development of novel prognostic markers as well as better-rationalized anti-cancer therapy 

Among the known signaling networks that are important for cancer formation, growth, and progression, three pathways have attracted much attention:

• Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)
• Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3)
• Sonic Hedgehog-GLI1 

Given their significant involvement in various perspectives of cancer biology, these pathways are considered ideal targets for cancer therapeutics. However, monotherapy targeting these pathways has demonstrated limited success. It is, therefore, an urgent task to better understand these signaling pathways to improve their efficacy.