Dr. Menck is a Professor at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. His primary interest is understanding the mechanisms of DNA damage repair and its relation to carcinogenesis and aging. His group employs cells from human syndromes defective in the nucleotide excision repair pathway, such as xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), Cockayne syndrome (CS), and trichothiodystrophy (TTD). XP patients, in particular, are highly sensitive to sunlight and have an increased frequency of skin lesions, including tumors, and skin aging is clearly accelerated. This is especially true in a sunny and tropical country like Brazil, where patients have less access to health care. His group is dedicated to identifying the molecular diagnosis of XP patients in Brazil, understanding the mechanisms involved in tumorigenesis in these patients, and trying to find ways to improve their quality of life.