Revealing the inherent heterogeneity of human malignancies by variant consensus strategies coupled with cancer clonal analysis

BMC Bioinformatics. 2014;15 Suppl 11(Suppl 11):S9. doi: 10.1186/1471-2105-15-S11-S9. Epub 2014 Oct 21.

Abstract

Tumors are heterogeneous in composition. They are composed of cancer cells proper, along with stromal elements that collectively form a microenvironment, all of which are necessary to nurture the malignant process. In addition, many of the stromal cells are modified to support the unique needs of the malignant state. Tumors are composed of a variety of clones or subpopulations of cancer cells, which may differ in karyotype, growth rate, expression of cell surface markers, sensitivity to therapeutics, etc. New tools and methods to provide an improved understanding of tumor clonal architecture are needed to guide therapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Clonal Evolution*
  • Clone Cells
  • Computational Biology / methods
  • Humans
  • Mutation*
  • Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Software