Focus on Gynecologic Malignancies (Energy Balance and Cancer)

Gynecologic malignancies, especially endometrial and ovarian cancers are among the most important and most severely affected by obesity. This volume of Energy Balance and Cancer, written by the world’s leading experts in this field, is arranged to provide a transdisciplinary assessment of the pertinent issues, results of relevant research on mechanisms, and control, strategies for dealing with affected patients and improving outcomes and future research needs. The volume comprehensively covers the epidemiology linking obesity to endometrial and ovarian cancer as well as the public awareness of this critical problem. Subsequent chapters explain biologic aspects of linkages between energy balance and gynecologic malignancies. The volume further outlines strategies to disrupt the linkage between obesity and gynecologic malignancies and concludes with a series of chapters focused on management strategies for obese patients with gynecologic malignancies. 

This volume provides a valuable resource for all physicians, scientists and other transdisciplinary investigators and practitioners interested and involved in energy balance and cancer. It should be a particularly useful guide to optimize outcomes for all practitioners dealing with patients with gynecologic malignancies challenged by energy balance issues. Moreover, it should serve as a useful guide to students and investigators interested in conducting further research on defining and disrupting the important linkage between energy balance and gynecologic malignancies.

Nathan A. Berger, MD, Distinguished University Professor and Hanna-Payne Professor of Experimental Medicine, Biochemistry, Genetics and Oncology, is Director of the Case Western Reserve University Center for Science, Health and Society. He obtained the MD degree from Hahnemann University, Philadelphia, PA, interned at Michael Reese Medical Center, Chicago, IL, and served as a medical resident and Hematology/Oncology Fellow at Washington University, St. Louis, MO. Dr. Berger was a research associate in the Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Gerontology Research Center, NICHD, NIH, Baltimore, MD. He was on the faculty at Washington University School of Medicine, before moving to Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine where he served consecutively as Chief, Hematology/Oncology Division, Cancer Center Director, Dean, CWRU School of Medicine and now Director, Center for Science, Health and Society. His research focuses on model systems to study impact of diet, obesity and exercise on aging and cancer and studies to translate and evaluate these observations in human subjects

Karen H. Lu, MD, is Professor in the Department of Gynecologic Oncology and Reproductive Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, where she holds the J. Taylor Wharton Distinguished Chair in Gynecologic Oncology. Her main clinical interests include the surgical and medical treatment of women with ovarian and endometrial cancers, as well as the management of women at genetically high risk for these cancer. Dr. Lu completed her undergraduate training at Harvard University and received her MD degree from Yale University School of Medicine. She completed her Obstetrics and Gynecology training at The Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She serves as Co-Director for the MD Anderson Clinical Cancer Genetics Program and Director of the High Risk Ovarian Cancer Screening Clinic. She is a national leader in the cancer genetics field and has published seminal articles on hereditary gynecologic cancers. In addition, she serves as Director of the Uterine Cancer Research Program (UCRP) and Principal Investigator of the NCI-sponsored Uterine Cancer Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE). She leads a research team that aims to apply laboratory-based findings to improve the care of gynecologic cancer patients. She serves on the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Cancer Prevention Committee, the NCI PDQ Editorial Board for Cancer Genetics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Committee on Gynecological Practice Bulletins.

Ann H. Klopp, MD, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX. She is a physician-scientist specializing in the treatment of gynecologic cancers with laboratory research focus on energy balance and gynecologic malignancies. Clinically, she is interested in the management of high-risk endometrial and cervical cancers and the use of advanced radiation techniques to minimize toxicity. She leads the Global Oncology program in the Division of Radiation Oncology. She has extensive experience with clinical trials, serving as the PI on a phase III randomized study through the NRG as well as multiple investigator initiated single arm prospective studies at MD Anderson.  She is a member of the Corpus steering committee at NRG and the Uterine Task Force of the Gynecologic Cancer Steering Committee at NIH. Her current laboratory research on the impact of obesity and the microenvironment on gynecologic cancers using clinical specimens and murine models is funded by CPRIT, the American Cancer Society and the HPV moonshot program at MD Anderson Cancer Center.