Skip to Content
800-533-8762
  • Careers
  • Newsroom
  • Health Care Professionals
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
UPMC
  • Find a Doctor
  • Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
      Allergy & Immunology Behavioral & Mental Health Cancer Ear, Nose & Throat Endocrinology Gastroenterology Heart & Vascular Imaging Neurosciences Orthopaedics
      Physical Rehabilitation Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Primary Care Senior Services Sports Medicine Telemedicine Transplant Surgery Walk-In Care Weight Management Women’s Health
      See all Services
    • Services by Region
    • Find a UPMC health care facility close to you quickly by browsing by region.
      UPMC in Western Pa. Western Pa. and New York
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Services
  • Locations
    • Locations by Type
    • Locations by Type
      UPMC hospitals
      Hospitals
      Physical Therapy
      Physical Therapy
      Urgent care
      Walk-In Care
      UPMC Outpatient Centers
      Outpatient Centers
      UPMC Imaging Services
      Imaging
      Community Health Centers
      Community Health Centers
      See All Locations
    • Locations by Region
    • Locations by Region
      UPMC in Southwest Pa. Southwest Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Northwest Pa and Ny. Northwest Pa. & Western N.Y.
      UPMC in West Central Pa. West Central Pa.
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Locations
  • Patients & Visitors
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
      Patients and Visitors Resources Pay a Bill Classes & Events Medical Records Health Library Patient Information
      Patient Portals Privacy Information Shared Decision Making Traveling Patients Visitor Information
      Man uses mobile phone
      Pay a Bill
      Nurse reviews medical chart
      Request Medical Records
  • Patient Portals
  • Find Covid-19 updates
  • Schedule an appointment
  • Request medical records
  • Pay a bill
  • Learn about financial assistance
  • Find classes & events
  • Send a patient an eCard
  • Make a donation
  • Volunteer
  • Read HealthBeat blog
  • Explore UPMC Careers
Skip to Content
UPMC
  • Patient Portals
  • For Patients & Visitors
    • Find a Doctor
    • Locations
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Pay a Bill
    • Services
    • More
      • Medical Records
      • Financial Assistance
      • Classes & Events
      • HealthBeat Blog
      • Health Library
  • About UPMC
    • Why UPMC
    • Facts & Stats
    • Supply Chain Management
    • Community Commitment
    • More
      • Financials
      • Support UPMC
      • UPMC Apps
      • UPMC Enterprises
      • UPMC International
  • For Health Care Professionals
    • Physician Information
    • Resources
    • Education & Training
    • Departments
    • Credentialing
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
  • Newsroom
  • UPMC >
  • Our Services >
  • Regenerative Medicine - The McGowan Institute >
  • Working Towards Treatments >
  • Cancer
Regenerative Medicine - The McGowan Institute
About Us
What is Regenerative Medicine?
Working Towards Treatments
Biomaterials
Cancer
Facial Reconstruction
Heart & Blood Vessels
Liver Support
Muscle Tissue Regeneration
Neurological Disorders
Orthopaedic Injuries
Pancreatic and Diabetes Research
Respiratory Assistance (Lung)
Urinary Tract
Our Research
Patient Stories
News and Events
Contact Us
Regenerative Medicine - The McGowan Institute
About Us
What is Regenerative Medicine?
Working Towards Treatments
Biomaterials
Cancer
Facial Reconstruction
Heart & Blood Vessels
Liver Support
Muscle Tissue Regeneration
Neurological Disorders
Orthopaedic Injuries
Pancreatic and Diabetes Research
Respiratory Assistance (Lung)
Urinary Tract
Our Research
Patient Stories
News and Events
Contact Us

Chat Keywords List

  • cancel or exit: Stops your conversation
  • start over: Restarts your current scenario
  • help: Shows what this bot can do
  • terms: Shows terms of use and privacy statement
  • feedback: Give us feedback
Continue
Chat with UPMC
RESTART
MENU
CLOSE

Cancer Treatment at the McGowan Institute

Cancer Treatment at the McGowan InstituteWhy do so many cancers come back after aggressive medical treatments? Could radiation and chemotherapy be targeting the wrong cells? McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine cancer researchers have found that some cancer cells are churned out by their own diabolical kind of stem cells.

Modern chemotherapy is based on the idea that you can kill cancer by attacking rapidly dividing cells that are cancer's hallmark. But stem cells don't divide rapidly. They slowly spin off new generations of cells, and these are the fast reproducers. By killing the progeny of stem cells, chemotherapy may be destroying the bulk of the tumor while leaving the stem cells relatively unharmed — and still churning out tumor-building descendants. The following are select examples of projects within the McGowan Institute that are directed toward cancer-related treatments:

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members Albert Donnenberg, PhD, and Vera Donnenberg, PhD, are on a quest to find, and eventually kill or manipulate, dormant cancer stem cells. Research by the Donnenbergs has led to the identification and characterization of specific cancer stem cells as well as the development of new flow cytometry-based tools and techniques.

Surgery, a crucial therapeutic modality in the treatment of solid tumors, can induce sterile inflammatory processes which can result in metastatic progression. Liver ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury has been shown to foster the liver’s capture of circulating cancer cells and accelerate metastatic growth. Efforts to reduce these negative consequences have not been thoroughly investigated.

Research in the laboratory of McGowan Institute faculty member Eric Lagasse, PharmD, PhD, could lead to new insights into the development and treatment of esophageal cancer and the precancerous condition known as Barrett’s esophagus. In preclinical studies, Dr. Lagasse and his team found a small population of cells that divide more slowly, are more primitive, can generate specialized or differentiated cells, and have the ability to self-renew, which is a defining trait of stem cells. This discovery could lead to new models to study esophageal disease.

Learn more about the discovery of stem cells in the esophagus.

SkinJect, Inc., a Pittsburgh-based company, licensed with the University of Pittsburgh its novel, minimally invasive treatment for common forms of non-melanoma skin cancer, basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma. Two million new cases of basal cell cancer are reported each year in the United States, and more than half of all patients suffer a recurrence. The new product under development could dramatically change the way these skin cancers are treated. The SkinJect™ patch is a thumb-sized array of dissolvable microneedles that will deliver a chemotherapeutic agent to kill an existing skin cancer. The SkinJect patch will be applied once a week, for 3 weeks, in the doctor’s office. The microneedles, less than a millimeter long, dissolve within 15 minutes of application. McGowan Institute affiliated faculty member Louis D. Falo, Jr., MD, PhD, is a co-inventor of the microneedle patch.

Learn more about the SkinJect™ patch.

In support of post-cancer treatment concerns, stem cells derived from a patient's own fat have been studied as a resource in breast reconstruction after cancer surgery by McGowan Institute faculty member J. Peter Rubin, MD, FACS.

Learn more about fat in breast reconstruction. 

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members Louis D. Falo, Jr., MD, PhD, and Valerian Kagan, PhD, DSc, have demonstrated that a newly developed topical therapy applied before or after radiation exposure prevents skin damage in both animal and human models.

Learn more about topical therapy for radiation-induced skin damage.

Contact Us

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Bridgeside Point II 
450 Technology Drive
Suite 300
Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Read information on campus shuttles.

Phone: 412-624-5500
Fax: 412-624-5363
Email: McGowan@pitt.edu

Statistics at a Glance: The Burden of Cancer in the United States

  • In 2016, an estimated 1,685,210 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the United States and 595,690 people will die from the disease.
  • The most common cancers in 2016 are projected to be breast cancer, lung and bronchus cancer, prostate cancer, colon and rectum cancer, bladder cancer, melanoma of the skin, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, thyroid cancer, kidney and renal pelvis cancer, leukemia, endometrial cancer, and pancreatic cancer.
  • The number of people living beyond a cancer diagnosis reached nearly 14.5 million in 2014 and is expected to rise to almost 19 million by 2024.
  • Approximately 39.6% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point during their lifetimes (based on 2010-2012 data).
  • National expenditures for cancer care in the United States totaled nearly $125 billion in 2010 and could reach $156 billion in 2020.

Read more about cancer statistics from the National Cancer Institute.

About UPMC

UPMC is a world-renowned, nonprofit health care provider and insurer committed to delivering exceptional, people-centered care and community services. Headquartered in Pittsburgh and affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences, UPMC is shaping the future of health through clinical and technological innovation, research, and education. Dedicated to advancing the well-being of our diverse communities, we provide nearly $2 billion annually in community benefits, more than any other health system in Pennsylvania. Our 100,000 employees — including more than 5,000 physicians — care for patients across more than 40 hospitals and 800 outpatient sites in Pennsylvania, New York, and Maryland, as well as overseas. UPMC Insurance Services covers more than 4 million members, providing the highest-quality care at the most affordable price. To learn more, visit UPMC.com.

Additional Resources

How Do I Get Treatment?
Expert cancer care is available at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center.

UPMC
200 Lothrop Street Pittsburgh, PA 15213

412-647-8762 800-533-8762

Patients And Visitors
  • Find a Doctor
  • Locations
  • Pay a Bill
  • Patient & Visitor Resources
  • Disabilities Resource Center
  • Services
  • Medical Records
  • No Surprises Act
  • Price Transparency
  • Financial Assistance
  • Classes & Events
  • Health Library
Health Care Professionals
  • Physician Information
  • Resources
  • Education & Training
  • Departments
  • Credentialing
Newsroom
  • Newsroom Home
  • Inside Life Changing Medicine Blog
  • News Releases
About
  • Why UPMC
  • Facts & Stats
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Community Commitment
  • Financials
  • Supporting UPMC
  • HealthBeat Blog
  • UPMC Apps
  • UPMC Enterprises
  • UPMC Health Plan
  • UPMC International
  • Nondiscrimination Policy
Life changing is...
Follow UPMC
  • Contact Us
  • Website/Email Terms of Use
  • Medical Advice Disclaimer
  • Privacy Information
  • Active Privacy Alerts
  • Sitemap
© 2025 UPMC I Affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Supplemental content provided by Healthwise, Incorporated. To learn more, visit healthwise.org
Find Care
Providers
Video Visit
Portal Login