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Research
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST)
I am interested in both the role of molecular signaling in the genesis of liver cancers and the study of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). Currently, my laboratory is investigating: 1) novel allosteric kinase inhibitors to target imatinib-resistant GIST; 2) the role of Hedgehog signaling in the development of GIST; 3) the genomics of wild-type (WT), lacking driver mutations in KIT, PDGFRA, SDHx, or RAS pathway components (KRAS, BRAF, NF-1); 4) the epidemiology of GIST; and 5) novel surgical approaches for GIST (e.g., laparo-endoscopic gastric surgery and intra-operative fluorescence labeling of tumors).

Primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma, HCC)
As a postdoctoral research fellow, my colleagues and I were the first to identify the way in which the Hedgehog signaling pathway regulates liver progenitors, hepatic stellate cells, and human hepatocellular carcinoma. This body of work has been presented at national and international meetings, as well as has been published in peer-reviewed journals. As Hedgehog inhibitors have entered the clinic, this work holds the potential for high impact and translation into clinical trials. We have moved our findings from the bench to the bedside. I am the principal investigator of an investigator-initiated trial titled, “Phase Ib Study of Single Agent Sonidegib, an Oral Hedgehog Inhibitor, as Second-Line Therapy in Patients with Advanced or Metastatic Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Child-Pugh A/B7 Cirrhosis (NCT02151864).” This is the first study of a Hedgehog inhibitor in humans with liver diseases.

Personalized medicine
As a clinician-scientist, I am always interested in translating my scientific findings into the clinical care of my patients. With the recent revolution of genomics, many genetic investigations have become technically and fiscally feasible. Our interest in linking genomics with personalized cancer care led to the initiation of a multi-disciplinary molecular tumor board at Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health. In order to apply this approach more rigorously, Dr. Razelle Kurzrock and I are co-principal investigators on a genomic-driven clinical study of 225 patients titled, I-PREDICT (Investigation of Profile-Related Evidence Determining Individualized Cancer Therapy; NCT02534675).

Profile
Dr. Jason Sicklick is an assistant professor of Surgery at UC San Diego Health Moores Cancer Center. He is a board-certified general surgeon and surgical oncologist specializing in the treatment of hepatobiliary diseases and sarcomas, including gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). He received his medical degree from the UCLA School of Medicine, he completed his general surgery residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, and he completed a fellowship in surgical oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center where he was the chief administrative fellow. He joined the Division of Surgical Oncology at Moores Cancer Center in 2010. Dr. Sicklick is an active member of the National Cancer Institute GIST Working Group, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Hepatobiliary Committee, and the Transatlantic Atlantic Retroperitoneal Sarcoma Working Group. Dr. Sicklick is on the editorial board of Annals of Surgical Oncology, Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery and Journal of Surgical Research. He is also a member of the numerous societies including the Society of Surgical Oncology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American College of Surgeons, American Association for Cancer Research, the Association of Academic Surgery, and the Society for University Surgeons.

His clinical interests include the treatment of GIST, abdominal/retroperitoneal sarcomas, colorectal and neuroendocrine cancers that have metastasized to the liver, and primary liver tumors. Working with other members of Moores Cancer Center’s Gastrointestinal Cancer Unit and UC San Diego Liver Center, he employs a number of techniques including:

Minimally invasive gastric resections of GIST, including laparo-endoscopic resections in collaboration with our minimally invasive surgery team;

Organ-sparing sarcoma resections to remove abdominal and retroperitoneal tumors;

Parenchymal-sparing liver resections to remove smaller amounts of liver tissue and increase the safety of such operations;

Hepatic arterial infusion pump placement for delivery of chemotherapy directly to the liver through a surgically implanted device;

Microwave (thermal) ablation-the application of heat to kill tumors;

Systemic chemotherapy administered by our medical oncology team;

Portal vein embolization to increase the amount of liver remaining after surgical resection performed by our interventional radiology team;

Hepatic artery embolization-blockage of blood vessels supplying liver tumors performed by our interventional radiology team;

His translational and clinical research focus on molecular mechanisms of GIST and hepatocellular carcinoma, as well as precision medicine approaches to cancer therapy.

Current Positions
- Assistant Professor In-Residence, Division of Surgical Oncology, Department of Surgery
- General Surgery Residency Associate Program Director, Department of Surgery, University of California, San Diego
- Co-Director for Clinical Collection, Biorepository and Tissue Technology Shared Resource (BTTSR), Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health

Dr. Igor Koutsenok is a Professor of Practice in Psychiatry. He graduated as a medical doctor in 1983 at the National Medical University in Kiev, (Ukraine). In 1986 he completed his psychiatry residency training and received degree as psychiatrist from the Medical University in Sofia (Bulgaria). In 1993-1996 he worked at the University of London, Department of Addictive Behavior and Psychological Medicine at St. Georges Hospital Medical School, where he completed his Masters Degree in Addiction Psychiatry. In 1997 he was recruited by the University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and since then he serves as faculty member of the Department. Presently he is a Professor of Psychiatry, Director of the UCSD Center for Criminality and Addiction Research, Training and Application (CCARTA), Co-Director of the South East Asia Addiction Technology Transfer Center and Director of the UCSD-Second Chance Collaborative Behavioral Interventions Program. In 2013 he was appointed as Director of Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations Office in Vienna, and served the UN until 2016, when he returned to the UCSD. Over the last 20 years Dr. Koutsenok led the design and implementation of the Workforce Development Training series for substance abuse counselors, mental health practitioners, social workers and criminal justice professionals in California and multiple states of the United States. He was the UCSD FACT (Forensic Addiction Treatment Certification) Board of Education Director. Dr. Koutsenok served as of the trainers for the National Drug Court Institute in the USA and provided training and education for judges and members of the judicial system nationwide and internationally. Dr. Koutsenok is also a member of the International Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT). For many years Dr. Koutsenok teaches general and addiction psychiatry to medical students, psychiatry residents, psychology trainees, social workers, criminal justice professionals, and policy makers around the world. He has authored and co-authored over 50 scientific publications and 5 book chapters. Dr. Koutsenok has been invited as a presenter and trainer to hundreds of conferences and workshops in the USA and in more than 40 countries around the world.