Department of Molecular Diagnosis

Chief: Professor Xu, KaiLi
Staffs: 8 (faculty members:3, employees: 5)

The Department of Molecular Diagnosis was established in 1973, based on the Shanghai group in study of Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) as a screening test of hepatocellular carcinoma. The test was used in urban Shanghai as well as Qi-Dong county which is the high incidence area of liver cancer in China. At that time, Professor Xu, KaiLi was the leader of Shanghai Group and one of pioneers in study of AFP used for diagnosis of liver cancer in China. During the early period of 1970s, the program of large scale of AFP screening for hepatocellular carcinoma was taken place in about two million people and a lot of pre-clinical patients with liver cancer were found in urban Shanghai. The Department was award by Chinese First Conference of Science and Technology Progress due to the above contributions in 1978. It was impossible to distinguish liver cancer from benign diseases of liver with increased AFP by detection of total amount of AFP alone. Professor Xu was the first one to study the heterogeneity of AFP in China. He found that the variants of AFP in serum could be used for early diagnosis of liver diseases with elevation of AFP, from malignant to benign by using lectin affinity radiocrossed immunoelectrophoresis in 1982. These norms of liver tumor markers are based on wide scientific consultation in China. During 1986 to 1988, the Department was cooperated with the Department of Pathology, Medical School of Texas University at Houston, to do the research on the function of duck AFP in pathogenesis of liver disorder in Peking duck by feeding carcinogens. In 1990s, about 20 projects of National and Shanghai government were funded. About 200 papers were published on national and international journals, focusing on the alterations of oncogenes, tumor suppress genes, some of chromosomes instability and molecular pathology for cancers of liver, lung and ovary. There were 6 prizes to be awarded by National and Shanghai Government and 2 patents were applied in the Department.

Based on the research practices of cancer during last decade, there are three major research tasks for the Department in future. The first one is to do study on Molecular Pathology of lung cancer in urban Shanghai, focusing on the molecular alteration during pathogenesis of lung cancer. The second is attempt to find out some new molecular markers ( tumor markers and biological markers ) which could be used for clinical trial, including pre-clinical diagnosis, early diagnosis, monitoring metastasis and prognosis of cancer. The third one is to establish a technical platform using for tumor angiogenesis, tumor cells in blood, circulating DNA from cancer patients, cancer tissues and serum bank.