Czechowicz lab at Stanford Promising research needs continued support to answer the next question. A laboratory finding may need testing in more models. A screening study may need years of follow-up. An approach ready for a clinical study needs the...
Supported Research
Cancer Prevention in Fanconi Anemia through Alleviating Formaldehyde Genotoxicity
Amount Funded: $488,000
In collaboration with the American Association for Cancer Research, a global leader in cancer research, we’ve presented Dr. Wang with the 2024 Fanconi Cancer Foundation-AACR NextGen Grant for Transformative Cancer Research. Through this groundbreaking work, Dr. Wang seeks to prevent cancer in patients with Fanconi anemia (FA) by targeting specific nutritional and metabolic pathways.
The accumulation of DNA damage and genetic mutations ultimately causes cancer. This process is greatly accelerated in children and young adults with FA. A recent advancement in the field is the discovery that our bodies produce high quantities of reactive chemicals called aldehydes, which cause DNA damage in FA patients. In this project, Dr. Wang will leverage mouse models and FA patient samples to study the nutritional and metabolic pathways that regulate aldehyde production, with the aim of targeting these pathways as novel cancer prevention strategies for FA patients.
Researchers: Meng Wang, MD, PHD
Cancer Prevention in Fanconi Anemia through Alleviating Formaldehyde Genotoxicity
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How can we prevent cancer in people with FA? How can treatments become safer? At the 2026 FA Scientific Symposium in Phoenix, researchers shared progress toward answering these questions, alongside work to protect blood-forming cells and better understand the broader effects of FA. Some approaches are entering clinical studies. Others are helping researchers decide which ideas deserve further testing.
More than four decades ago, Lynn Frohnmayer was a mother searching for answers after learning that three of her five children had Fanconi anemia. There was no roadmap and no established network of families or experts. Information was scarce, treatments were limited, and the future her family had been given was devastating.