Microchip's Potential in the Clinical Setting
An interview with Shyamala Maheswaran, PhD
Breaking News... Simple Device Analyzes Cancer Tumor Cells in the Blood With the Potential of Measuring Treatment Response
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have shown that a microchip-based device that detects and analyzes tumor cells in the bloodstream can be used to determine the genetic signature of lung tumors, allowing identification of those appropriate for targeted treatment. A pilot study of the device called the CTC-chip will appear in the July 24 New England Journal of Medicineand is receiving early online release.
“The CTC-chip opens up a whole new field of studying tumors in real time,” says Daniel Haber, MD, PhD, director of the MGH Cancer Center and the study’s senior author. “When the device is ready for larger clinical trials, it should give us new options for measuring treatment response, defining prognostic and predictive measures, and studying the biology of blood-borne metastasis, which is the primary method by which cancer spreads and becomes lethal.” Read More >
Determining Genetic Signature Of Lung Tumors Can Help Guide Treatment A new study in the May 20 Journal of Clinical Oncology led by Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center investigators found that upfront gefitinib (Iressa®) treatment considerably improved the outcomes for non-small-cell-lung-cancer (NSCLC). "This is a pivotal clinical trial that demonstrates the power of personalized medicine in lung cancer treatment,” says Lecia Sequist, MD, MPH, of the Cancer Center, who led the study. “It is an exciting glimpse into what we hope is the future of cancer care. Instead of a ‘one size fits all’ therapy, we are moving towards finding the best treatment for each patient.” Read More >
More News
The Prostate Cancer Foundation Awards Adam Feldman, MD, as one of the 2008 Young Investigators Award Read More >
Researchers Identify Cancer Outcome Predictor
A recent study by Rebecca Heist, MD, MPH, and colleagues, published in theJournal of Clinical Oncology, showed that two variations of the angiogenesis gene VEGF were associated with significant survival differences in early stage non-small cell lung cancer. Plans are underway to assess whether these genetic variations may help predict which treatments will be most beneficial.
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