FYI: In the Lab On Cancer: Investigators Sequence the Genome of a Rare Head and Neck Cancer 30 comments By Julie Grisham, MS, Science Writer/Editor | Friday, May 24, 2013 Pictured: Timothy Chan Physician-scientist Timothy Chan Since the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, many researchers have turned their efforts toward sequencing the genomes of various kinds of cancer. Collaborative groups including The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), a government-funded project created to accelerate our understanding of the molecular basis of cancer, have published genomic information on lung, ovarian, and colorectal cancers, among others. Memorial Sloan-Kettering has played a role in many of these multicenter efforts, sharing both tumor samples and the expertise of its clinician-scientists. But despite these efforts, these studies only examine a small fraction of the many different types of human malignancies. Now our investigators have performed complete sequencing and analysis of a large set of a rare head and neck cancer called adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC), which is an aggressive form of salivary gland cancer. “Sequencing rare cancers such as ACC is a great way for Memorial Sloan-Kettering to take the lead in unraveling cancer genomics,” says Timothy A. Chan, a radiation oncologist and investigator in the Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program (HOPP), and the senior author of the study, which was published online May 19 in Nature Genetics. “Just as we have the specialized knowledge and experience to treat rare cancers in the clinic, analyzing their genomics is an area where we believe we can make an important contribution.”
Posted on: Fri, 17 Jan 2014 14:13:09 +0000
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