Technology Review: Fine-tuning Cancer Treatments

Scientists at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and Massachusetts General Hospital will test 400 compounds, including chemotherapy drugs and molecularly targeted treatments, on 1,000 cancer cell lines containing cancer-related genetic mutations in an effort to advance personalized medicine. The findings are expected to help drugmakers design clinical studies that include only patients who are most likely to benefit from experimental cancer drugs.
 
"...While a number of molecularly targeted cancer drugs, such as gleevec and herceptin, are already on the market, the effectiveness of most of these drugs depends on a single genetic mutation or molecular marker in the tumor. Scientists say that incorporating the diversity of cancer genomics in much greater detail will enable more personalized treatment for a broader number of patients...cont'd