From scientists conducting cancer research, to those developing cancer diagnostics and therapeutics, to oncologists treating cancer patients, we are all working towards a common goal of helping cancer patients live long, satisfying lives. Advances in knowledge of cancer biology and diagnostic or therapeutic innovations are at the forefront of helping to reach that goal. It is now established that cancer is a set of genetic diseases, with accumulated genetic aberrations sustaining the uncontrolled growth of malignant cells.
These aberrations include mutations, chromosomal copy number changes and gene fusions. In recent years, large-scale sequencing efforts have revealed the most common genomic aberrations across a range of tumour types. To better treat the disease, pharmaceutical companies are working to develop therapies effective in targeting these common aberrations.
The challenge is matching the right patient to the right drug. Clinical research suggests that cancer patients have better outcomes when treated with therapies matched to the genetic aberrations in their tumours than cancer patients who are treated with more generally applied therapies. Precision oncology is a term used to describe the effort to match the right patient to the right drug at the right time. Key to meeting this goal is identification of the relevant genomic aberrations present within a patient’s disease.
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