During the next several weeks after surgery, patients are given a combination of chemotherapy with the drugs Taxol and cisplatin, as well as radiation therapy. The James is also one of several institutions conducting a chemopreventive trial to prevent recurrences of squamous cell cancer of the oral cavity. Chemopreventive involves taking a drug or nutrient to prevent cancer. For patients who have undergone treatment for early stage oral cancer, the major problem is the development of secondary tumors. In addition to clinical research, Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Center is conducting a variety of basic research programs that open new doors to how diseases can be treated and prevented.
Basic research answers a question of scientific or medical interest.
Examples of basic research include identifying the role of a certain molecule in the cell or how a particular gene is turned on and off. An example of a particular basic research project at the Comprehensive Cancer Center which could benefit oral cancer patients involves finding a way to more quickly identify potential new anti-cancer drugs. Some 40,000 chemicals stored in the National Cancer Institute's Natural Products Repository await testing for possible anti-cancer activity. Identifying that one promising chemical our of a thousand is a long and expensive task. But researchers at Ohio State developed a screening test that identifies chemicals that blocks DNA replication, which is how many anti-cancer drugs work.