Dr. Malkin's research is closely integrated with his clinical field of expertise. Specifically, his research program focuses primarily on genetic mechanisms of childhood cancer susceptibility and the genetic basis of childhood sarcomas (cancers of bone, muscle and other soft tissues). His research team was the first to demonstrate that highly variable regions of DNA, termed copy number variations, are found in excess in the blood of individuals who harbor germline TP53 mutations, both children and adults, at very high risk of developing cancer and may represent the earliest genetic changes that ultimately lead to development of cancer.