Impact of different radiation qualities on molecular and functional changes in cancer cells: Role of Hedgehog signaling?

Hadrontherapy is an advanced technique in the field of external beam radiotherapy (RT) that makes use of charged particles such as protons or carbon ions. Several advantages of hadrontherapy over conventional radiotherapy with photons exist, including a superior dose localization, a higher linear energy transfer (LET) and a higher relative biological effectiveness.

The Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is a pathway implicated in the initiation and progression of some specific tumor types. Recent studies demonstrated that activation of this pathway in response to photon exposure can lead to radioresistance and increased invasive and migratory capability of cancer cells. Currently, the impact of particle radiation on the Hh signaling pathway is unknown. The main focus of this PhD project is to further investigate the impact of different radiation qualities on paediatric medulloblastoma and prostate cancer cells in vitro, with a specific focus on Hh signaling.