Clinical cancer genome and precision medicine

Ann Surg Oncol. 2012 Nov;19(12):3646-50. doi: 10.1245/s10434-012-2542-9.

Abstract

Revolutionary sequencing technologies have changed biomedical research and life science exponentially. Revealing the whole landscape of causal somatic and inherited mutations underlying individual patient's cancer sample by whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and whole-exome sequencing (WES) can lead to not only a new mutations-based taxonomy of solid tumors (Stratton, Science 331:1553-1558, 2011). But also shapes a roadmap for precision medicine (Roychowdhury et al., Sci Transl Med 3:111ra121, 2011; Roukos, Expert Rev Mol Diagn 12:215-218, 2012; Mirnezami et al., N Engl J Med 366:489-491, 2012). This inevitable approach for personalized diagnostics in concert with free-falling genome sequencing costs raises now the question of applying next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology in the clinic. In the pragmatic clinical world and in contrast to innovative research, is NGS-based clinical evidence sufficient for decision-making on tailoring the best available treatment to the individual cancer patient?

Publication types

  • Editorial

MeSH terms

  • Genome, Human*
  • Humans
  • Molecular Targeted Therapy*
  • Neoplasms / genetics
  • Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Precision Medicine*