This past summer she was one of 50 people selected to participate in an undergraduate research program at  the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. One of the world’s preeminent medical institutions, MD Anderson counts among its faculty many pioneers in cancer prevention research.

“It was so impactful to know that they were once my age and now are world-renowned researchers,” Makara said of meeting such faculty, including the center’s president, Fordham graduate Ronald DePinho, MD, FCRH ’77.

“He said that we have the power to change the world, and that it takes two things to succeed: drive and collaboration. He can captivate a room,” Makara said of DePinho, who came to Fordham in 2012 to speak to pre-med students on advances in cancer research. “He was down to earth and eager to talk to students.”

During the 10-week program, Makara worked alongside a postdoctoral fellow, Jessica Bowser, PhD, and a professor, Russell Broaddus, MD, PhD, in the pathology lab, aiding in their research of treatments for low-grade endometrial cancer. This type of cancer generally has a high cure rate, Makara said, but in some patients the disease is returning months or years later having spread to other parts of the body—possibly due to a special type of mutation in tumors, the ß-catenin mutation. Since treatments, including chemotherapy, are not wholly successful, “developing targeted therapies is the next best option,” said Makara, who focused on a particular pathway in the mutation.

Bowser and Broaddus “have such a passion for what they do,” said Makara, “and always kept me motivated throughout all the successes and the technical difficulties.”

When she wasn’t working in the lab, Makara said she enjoyed attending grand rounds, where doctors and researchers from around the world present the latest in medical education. One day she walked into a lecture unaware of the topic at hand, but the presentation on acute pain in head and neck patients undergoing radiotherapy caught her interest. She soon started shadowing the chief of oral oncology at MD Anderson, Mark Chambers, DMD. He introduced her to specialties that “merged my love for cancer research and my new passion for dentistry.

“I didn’t know how captivating it would be,” said Makara, a biology and English double major. “It made science fun.”

At the end of the program, Makara and her fellow students presented their summer work at a poster session, where students, faculty, and physicians could ask questions about the research. In November, back at Fordham, she was asked to present her research on endometrial cancer at a Fordham Science Council meeting. This April she is presenting her work at Harvard Medical School’s New England Science Symposium and at Fordham’s Eighth Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium.

She’s back in the lab, too. After taking a virology course taught by Patricio Meneses, PhD, associate professor of biology at Fordham, Makara asked to join his lab, where he studies HPV, or human papillomavirus.

The most common sexually transmitted virus in the United States, HPV is responsible for an estimated one-third of the 1.5 million cancers attributed to viruses. Makara is in his lab three hours a day, three times a week, assisting in research on how to lessen the virus’s potentially deadly power.

“The fact that there is this kind of opportunity on campus,” said Makara, a native of Long Island and a first-generation Polish American, “enhances my skills and adds to my knowledge.”

She envisions pursing dentistry with a specialty in oral oncology and head and neck cancer. But for now, Makara will continue her research at Fordham—and again in Houston: She’s been invited to return to MD Anderson this summer.

– Rachel Buttner

A luminary in cancer research brought a message of hope to the Fordham community on Sept. 19, outlining the medical advances scientists have made in recent decades and identifying ways to address the remaining challenges.

Ronald A. DePinho, M.D., FCRH ’77, president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, presented “Conquering Cancer” for the Fordham University Science Council’s fall lecture, held at The University Club in Midtown.

Dr. DePinho, an internationally recognized researcher who spent 14 years at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School before assuming presidency of MD Anderson, said that medical advances have placed humanity at a turning point.

“This period of human history is going to go down as a major turning point for the human race,” Dr. DePinho told students, faculty, administrators, alumni, and others involved with the sciences. “I believe that it’s going to rank up there with the discovery of fire and the advent of socialization.”

Dr. DePinho said that cracking the genetic code in 1953 was a “seminal event” that prepared scientists today to understand life “on its most elemental level” and, moreover, have a huge impact on the successful treatment of disease.

However, there are new challenges as a result.

Thanks to improvements in vaccination, antibiotics, hygiene, and surgery, life expectancy has doubled worldwide; however, a larger older population means greater incidences of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

By 2050, Dr. DePinho said, we could be spending $1 trillion on Alzheimer’s disease alone.

“We have a very significant issue . . . and that is the changing demographics and the impact that this is going to have on our children and their children with respect to handling the burden of age-related disease,” he said.

Nevertheless, Dr. DePinho said he is confident that there is a solution.

“The answer is quite simple. It’s science. It’s to understand these diseases sufficiently so that we can prevent them from happening in the first place, detect them early, or, if they do occur, definitely resolve them. And with today’s knowledge and technology, we actually can do that.”

Two days after he spoke at Fordham, Dr. DePinho publicly announced that MD Anderson would be launching a $3 billion initiative to dramatically reduce cancer deaths over the next 10 years. The Moon Shots Program, as the center has termed it, will capitalize on technological advances to accelerate the pace at which scientific discoveries are turned into clinical practices. For patients diagnosed with the five leading cancers—including lung cancer, melanoma, breast and ovarian cancers, prostate cancer, and three types of leukemia—Dr. DePhinho announced that a cure is in sight.

At the Fordham lecture, Dr. DePinho explained some of the key achievements that augured well for finding a cure. He said that when the human genome was first sequenced in the 1990s, the project took 12 years and cost $3.6 billion to map one genome. Today, a human genome can be sequenced in just a few hours for $300.

Scientists have also made great strides in genetic engineering: by manipulating genes, they can target genetic mutations and “silence” them before they can become a disease.

Between the curtailed cost of sequencing and improvements in genetic engineering, interdisciplinary researchers across the country have begun mapping tens of thousands of tumors so that healthcare professionals can target treatments for specific cancers.

“Imagine trying to do battle with an enemy that’s over a ledge and you can’t see it,” he said. “Now we can go onto the summit with the technology that we have. We can see all the enemy troops and we can actually say which ones are the generals, as opposed to the privates, and use sniper instead of carpet bombing to go after those key generals so that, if we target them in the right way, the whole mission will collapse.”

Dr. DePinho, who was the 1977 Fordham salutatorian, also had a message for the students.

“When history writes how we conquered the great diseases, your generation will write the final chapter,” he said.

“You’re going to bear a very special responsibility, because the human race is counting on you to take what we have done and bring it to a point where it impacts on people—including the indigent, including the third world. Those are the values that I learned at Fordham.”

The lecture was sponsored by the Fordham University Science Council, which promotes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) initiatives at Fordham by supporting both students and faculty in their careers and research. Council members provide students with mentoring and advising and help provide opportunities for assistantships and internships.

A video of Dr. DePinho’s talk is available here.

The Fordham University Science Council will feature Fordham graduate and notable cancer researcher Ronald DePinho, M.D., at its upcoming fall lecture.

“Conquering Cancer”
Wednesday, Sept. 19
6 p.m.
The University Club | 1 West 54th Street, New York, N.Y.

DePinho, FCRH ’77, is an internationally recognized cancer researcher who specializes in aging and age-related degenerative disorders. Since September 2011, he has served as president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, a Houston-based institution devoted to cancer patient care, research, education, and prevention.

A Bronx native, DePinho was the 1977 Fordham salutatorian, received a medical degree in microbiology and immunology from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1981, and completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center.

He spent 14 years at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School in Boston and was founding director of the Belfer Institute for Applied Cancer Science at Dana-Farber. He also served as professor of genetics in Harvard’s Department of Medicine.

The Fordham University Science Council, which comprises alumni and friends of the University, promotes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) initiatives at Fordham by supporting both science students and faculty in their careers and research. Council members provide students with mentoring and advising and help provide opportunities for assistantships and internships.

The Council also hosts lectures and other events throughout the year that are free and open to the public.

For more information about the upcoming lecture, contact [email protected] or (212) 636-6574.