Targeted Therapy

From Inside Cancer Wiki

Targeted Therapy

Lesson Overview This lesson is designed to show students kinestheically how Tamoxifen works to stop cancer cell proliferation using students as cells.

Goals and Objectives

1. Students will understand how Tamoxifen works to inhibit growth of estrogen-dependent cancer cells. 2. Students will understand competitive inhibition through acting as cancer cells in the presence or absence of Tamoxifen.

The Lesson

Preparation Before class: Different colored poker chips to represent estrogen and Tamoxifen, covered container.

Describe any pre-class preparation necessary for the lesson.

DNALC Targeted Therapies section of Inside Cancer

Two students will represent estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells. A third student will select a poker chip from the bin. If an estrogen chip is chosen, the student walks to the two students and is joined by another student from the class (representing cell division i.e. two cells becoming four). The next student picks a chip and the cycle repeats for as long as you have students to join the "tumor" group.

For the second round, the bin will contain 10% estrogen chips and 90% Tamoxifen chips. When a student draws an estrogen chip, he/she joins the tumor group along with another student as before. If he/she draws a Tamoxifen chip, no tumor growth occurs, the cell dies, and he/she sits down.

50 min

Estimate the amount of time for each part of the lesson.

Student Handouts for the Lesson Plan

Handout will include the structures of Tamoxifen and estrogen to demonstrate the similarity. It includes the percentage of breast cancer that are estrogen-dependent and thus Tamoxifen-responsive. Handout includes questions about the targeted therapy.

Alternative Assessments Class participation.

Glossary -

Estrogen Tamoxifen Competitive inhibitor Estrogen-dependent tumor Targeted therapy