Is there hope for cancer?

We all know someone, or know of someone who has had cancer. The situation is usually the same. A sudden illness or scan, which finds a growth, that is foreign to one’s own body. The psychological, financial and physical implications for the unsuspecting patient, family, and the healthcare system are tremendous. Recent advancements in biotechnology could change how we conventionally identify and treat cancer.

Cancer as we know is one of the largest killers globally. For decades researchers have been working on trying to understand cancer, and it’s possible with the recent advances in genomic medicine the breakthrough could be closer than ever. Large studies such as the GWAS, The Total Cancer Genome Atlas and other organisations have been working systematically to understand the basic underpinnings of various types of cancers and how they will respond to treatment.

To understand the impact of how this technology will change the way cancer is treated we need to understand how cancer comes about. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acids) is the basic building block of life. Due to mutations in our DNA we may inherit cancer. External environmental factors such as, smoking, pollution, etc. can cause modifications in our DNA to bring about cancer. Cancer is generally caused by signals from DNA to cells causing them to grow abnormally and suppressing normal tissue growth. Hence in principle the DNA structure of cancer is different from its host. Using the latest technology we can now see the structure of the cancer and its composition based on DNA which allows us not only to predict, diagnose and treat but also screen how patients are progressing with treatment.

What does this mean for physicians?

Now based on genomic medicine there are thoughts on how to reclassify cancer. Some cancers have already undergone reclassification based on their genetic makeup and this would allow physicians to not only know precisely what medication to treat a patient with but also to monitor progression and metastasis of the cancer, possibly with simple blood tests. In cases of resistant cancers the physician would be able to look at the modification in DNA to prescribe targeted therapy for the type of tumour considering the patient’s specific genetic makeup. Early adaptations of this information have already been initiated in the market and some pharmaceutical companies are acknowledging that personalised treatment would be a natural evolution in the next couple of decades.

What does this mean for patients?

Patients being able to use precise medication for their conditions would help them avoid any unnecessary side effects. The complications of side effects from chemotherapy usually have a higher impact on the morbidity and mortality of the patient along with indirect cost increases. Apart from this if there are strong patterns of inheritance then the family members of the patient can be screened and monitored systematically. This would ensure that the disease if it occurs based on the technology available can be detected earlier and treated faster and more accurately allowing a better quality of life.

The race against cancer has gained a lot of traction in the last decade. The fact that technology allows us not only to understand how the components inside our body work but also how using the massive data sets from a multitude of technologies now available scientists can model proteins and their components into three dimensions allowing them to apply their research at the molecular level. The same approach that is being applied for cancer is now being directed to other complex diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and dementia to name a few.

Terminal illness could soon be a term of the past. In a landmark initiative President Obama dedicated $ 215 million towards precision medicine so as to further understand the molecular composition of cancer and its related treatment. Precision medicine, along with prevention and screening could rewrite the future of cancer, as we know it, changing the very fundamental pillars of medicine.

 

(The writer is the CEO/Director of Credence Genomics Ltd.)