Principles of Cancer Genetics

This is the second edition of a widely used textbook that consolidates the basic concepts of the cancer gene theory and provides a framework for understanding the genetic basis of cancer. Particular attention is devoted to the origins of the mutations that cause cancer, and the application of evolutionary theory to explain how the cell clones that harbor cancer genes tend to expand. Focused on the altered genes and pathways that cause the growth of the most common tumors, Principles of Cancer Genetics is aimed at advanced undergraduates who have completed introductory coursework in genetics, biology and biochemistry, medical students and medical house staff. For students with a general interest in cancer, this book provides a highly accessible and readable overview. For more advanced students contemplating future study in the field of oncology and cancer research, this concise book will be useful as a primer.

Fred Bunz, M.D., Ph.D is a native of Long Beach, New York. He attended Stony Brook University and graduated from its Medical Scientist Training Program. His doctoral research in the enzymology of human DNA replication was conducted at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Dr. Bunz completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Genetics at The Johns Hopkins University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and now heads a laboratory at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins that is focused on understanding the effects of DNA damage on cancer cells and normal cells. He lives in Baltimore with his wife, two children, a cat, and an Old English Sheepdog.