Every year, thousands of people are diagnosed with sarcoma, a rare cancer that develops in the bone and soft tissue of the body. Wireless Vision's 3rd Annual Swing for a Cure golf outing is sponsored by Region 2, raising money to support sarcoma research and help families currently battling this disease. Help us reach our $30,000 goal for Siteman Cancer Center and Washington University School of Medicine by donating today! All donations will go directly to either Dr. Brian Van Tine to fund sarcoma research or to the Patient Care Fund which helps families with the many expenses incurred during cancer care. 

About Dr. Brian Van Tine

Brian Andrew Van Tine, M.D., Ph.D. is a Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, where he is the Sarcoma Program Director at the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center. Dr. Van Tine received his Bachelor of Science degree from the Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry at The University of Arizona in 1995. Dr. Van Tine completed his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2005. His thesis research mainly focused on the role of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) in the development of cervical cancer with Profs. Louis T. Chow and Thomas R. Broker. After completing his M.D., Ph.D., Dr. Van Tine came to Washington University in St. Louis/Barnes Jewish Hospital where he did his Internal Medicine Residency and Medical Oncology Fellowship. Working to understand the intricate chemical reactions of molecules occurring in various types of cancerous tumors for therapeutic translation into new drugs and treatments is the overall goal of the Van Tine laboratory.

Research Summary

Dr. Van Tine’s laboratory studies how to take advantage of molecular weaknesses in cancer cells and use drugs that target those weaknesses. For example, they identified a genetic mutation in sarcoma cells that leads to a deficiency in a key amino acid that the cells depend on for survival. By using a special chemical screening process called global metabolomics, they can identify targeted drugs that block those amino acids from being made or used, therefore killing the cancer cells. These same chemical pathways can be used to help deliver chemotherapy drugs more effectively. By understanding the metabolism of tumor cells, Dr. Van Tine’s team takes bench-level findings to clinical trials, strategically developing combination drug therapies that will transform how sarcomas are treated.