Prostate cancer is the most common malignancy in US men and ranks second in cancer deaths. African American men have a much higher incidence rate and are more likely to die from prostate cancer, when compared to men from other ethnic groups. My group's work in prostate cancer spearheaded the development of the African American Hereditary Prostate Cancer Study Network. This multicenter collaboration is aimed at identifying a large number of African American families with men who have a high risk of developing prostate cancer and is the first of its kind.

My group is also pursuing the identification of novel tumor suppressor genes in sporadic cancer using array-based technologies. We will be pursuing a kidney tumor array based study to discover novel genes involved in the pathogenesis of papillary renal cell carcinoma. In addition, we will be looking to make cancer gene discoveries in prostate cancer and multiple myeloma. Our hope is that his work will lead to a better basic understanding of cancer, which in turn will ultimately lead to better quality of life for those afflicted by these diseases.