Breast Cancer Research Grants: Profile on Dr. Maggie Louie
Dr. Maggie Louie recently secured a grant from the Chicago-based Wendy Will Case Cancer Fund in the amount of $30,000 to support her research on the role environmental contaminants play in the spread of breast cancer.
This grant funding will support Dr. Louie's research into how the heavy metal cadmium-an environmental contaminant that enters the body through consumption of contaminated food and water or inhalation of cigarette smoke-contributes to the development of breast cancer. Dr. Louie's preliminary findings not only show that cadmium promotes breast cancer cell growth, but her lab also may have identified a potential pathway for its action.
Several studies conducted by other breast cancer researchers also support the theory that cadmium may promote the development of breast cancer. "Results from my study will provide a better understanding of how environmental contaminants such as cadmium can promote breast cancer," says Louie. The results of Dr. Louie's study could lead to significant clinical contributions, including screening for heavy metal toxicities, identifying heavy metal-associated breast cancer cases, and designing more effective treatments for breast cancer.
Dr. Louie received her Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology from UC Davis, where she continued with postdoctoral research on cancer biology before joining Dominican's Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics in 2005. Her research has been published in several peer review journals, including Molecular and Cellular Biology and The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Dr. Louie is currently working with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs to identify and apply for expanded funding to support this important breast cancer research. Funding applications are currently pending with the National Institutes of Health and the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
