Charlotte Foley's Prostate Cancer Stem Cell Project

In October 2001, funded by a Prostate Research Campaign UK grant, I started research on prostate cancer stem cells at the Prostate Cancer Research Laboratory at the Institute of Urology, University College London.

My project aims to find out more about the tiny proportion (<1%) of cells within the prostate that are stem cells.  These cells are found within the normal prostate and maintain it by dividing to produce daughter cells that replace cells that die off.  It has been suggested that prostate cancer may originate from a stem cell that mutates and produces far more daughter cells than required, leading to unrestrained, cancerous growth of the prostate.  Targeting these few cells may be all that is needed to destroy the whole cancer.

My laboratory has developed ways of isolating probable stem cells from benign prostate tissue.  I am taking samples of prostate cancer and using the same techniques to isolate cancer stem cells.  Once I have isolated them, I will be looking at which genes and proteins they express, their appearance and how they respond to hormones.

This January I was awarded a prestigious two-year research grant from the Royal College of Surgeons of England and Prostate Research Campaign UK.  Already having started my project undoubtedly helped me at interview.  I have now upgraded my project to a full PhD and over the next three years I hope to shed some light on how prostate cancer growth is controlled, and what part stem cells play in this.