ONCO 242 - INFECTIOUS ETIOLOGIES OF CANCER

[3 Credits]

This course will cover the infectious agents (bacteria, viruses, and parasites) that have the capacity to promote cancer in humans. Molecular mechanisms of oncogenesis will be discussed for each pathogen, along with the public health implications of infection with the organisms. Students will learn through a mix of didactic lectures and small-group discussion of published literature. The first part of the course will focus on established tumor pathogens, while the latter part of the course will focus on infections for which emerging data suggests a link between the infection and cancer. At the end of the course students will have acquired a working knowledge of infection-mediated oncogenesis mechanisms and the impact of these cancer-potentiating pathogens on human health and will have developed skills to critically evaluate the strength of emerging evidence linking pathogens to human cancers.