Scientists at Duke University’s Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy have developed a panel of genomic tests that analyzes the unique molecular traits of a cancerous tumor and determines, which chemotherapy will most aggressively attack that patient’s cancer.
In experiments reported in the November 2006 issue of the journal Nature Medicine, the researchers applied the genomic tests to cells derived from tumors of cancer patients. They found that the tests were 80 percent accurate in predicting which drugs would be most effective in killing the tumor.
The Duke team plans to begin a clinical trial of the genomic tests in breast cancer patients next year.