On Wednesday, August 17, approximately 30 Spartans gathered at MSU Biomedical Sciences and via Zoom to meet with Dr. Farzan Siddiqui, vice chair of Radiation Oncology and director of Head and Neck Radiation Oncology, and Dr. Stephen Brown, cancer research specialist, both of the Henry Ford Cancer Institute. Siddiqui and Brown are looking for cancer research collaborators in a high-grade gliomas Phase 1 clinical trial and other studies that would benefit from spontaneous tumor models, such as those seen in patients at the MSU Veterinary Medical Center. With two new veterinary oncologists—Dr. Melanie Moore, assistant professor of Radiation Oncology, and Dr. Alison Masyr, assistant professor of Medical Oncology—the College and Henry Ford may be a perfect match.

“Henry Ford has had incredible success in their cancer research programs. They’re already collaborating with some of our College faculty like Dr. Kurt Zinn and our fellow Spartans like Dr. Rick Neubig, but there’s room for so much more collaboration in comparative medicine,” says Dr. Srinand Sreevatsan, associate dean of Research and Graduate Studies and professor for the College’s Department of Pathobiology and Diagnostic Investigation.

Brown agreed during the meeting, saying that he saw the MSU veterinary school as a missing link and a pathway toward clinical use. He discussed Henry Ford’s oncologic research priorities including anti-tumor strategies, normal tissue protection for radiation injury, and early predictors of tumor response, while Siddiqui focused on gene therapy. College faculty were quick to jump in with ideas for collaboration to the benefit of both human and animal health including different types of research studies and immersion experiences for residents and interns.

For more information about Molecules to Medicine and research at the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine, contact Dr. Srinand Sreevatsan.