Douglas Yee Labs

Douglas Yee, MD, is a medical oncologist who treats adult patients with cancer. His laboratory researches the regulation of cancer cells by insulin and the insulin-like growth factors ( IGFs ). It was one of the first to show a role for this pathway in Ewing's sarcoma and breast cancer. The lab focuses on the signaling pathways regulated by the IGFs relevant to cancer biology, and has shown that IGF signaling is dependent on activation of specific adaptor proteins and downstream signaling molecules. Dr. Yee's lab also evaluates the role for the fetal isoform of the insulin receptor (IR-A) in breast cancer biology. Interactions between estrogen receptor-expressing breast cancers and insulin/IGFs result in enhanced growth and increased survival. While some anti-IGF strategies have been tested in clinical trials, toxicities and lack of targeting of IR-A has limited the clinical efficacy. The lab is now working on strategies to target IR-A specifically without inhibition of the adult isoform of insulin receptor (IR-B).