According to a recently published paper, a Vancouver man's oral cancer was treated in a method that researchers say could become the leading cancer treatment modality within a decade.
The patient had an aggressive tongue tumor that wasn't responding to the conventional anti-cancer treatment established for tumors in this part of the body. His oncologist appealed to scientists at the BC Cancer Agency Genome Science Centre and they undertook the full sequencing of the genome of that specific tumor.
On completion, they searched the genome for genetic pathways familiar to them from other cancers and they found one: renal cell carcinoma, or cancer of the kidney. Beyond surgery, neither chemotherapy or radiation has proven effective in treating renal cell carcinoma.
Nonetheless, this is being seen as a major breakthrough in cancer treatment and could signify an exciting new direction in personalized cancer care.
CANCER TYPE(S)
Renal cell carcinoma
TREATMENT TYPE(S)
Genome sequencing, personalized care
WHERE WAS THIS RESEARCH PUBLISHED?
Genome Biology
By Ross Bonander
Source
The Vancouver Sun
