Cancer Tissue Acquisition and Genomic Testing in Integrated Diagnostic Centers

In a recent article, Dr. Eric Topol discussed what he describes as the "cancer clinic of the future." However, much of his discussion was directed at tumor tissue specimen collection and genomic testing (see: Topol on the Cancer Clinic of the Future). Below is an excerpt from it: So what is the cancer clinic of the future going to look like, because it's just starting to get developed today?  For example, when we have an individual presenting for a new diagnosis of cancer, we have to move away from fine-needle aspiration and minimal tissue; we need real tissue to be able to process it properly. Not only do we need the formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) specimen, but we also need another type of FF -- that is, flash-frozen specimens so that we can then whole-genome sequence this tissue. Now, when that is done at the primary diagnosis and done within hours and analyzed with the appropriate software algorithms, we could get the driver mutations nailed within 24 hours from the diagnosis. This can set up remarkably precise therapy that can be given to the patient on the basis of that individual's tumor. There are no 2 different cancers that are the same anywhere. Just like there are no 2 individuals who have the same DNA, that's the same for a tumor. One of the issues that we have to confront is that there's a lot of intratumor heterogeneity. We need multiple samples to sequence from the tumor, and if there's already a metastatic lesion, we...
Source: Lab Soft News - Category: Pathologists Authors: Tags: Clinical Lab Testing Healthcare Business Healthcare Information Technology Laboratory Industry Trends Medical Research Pathology Informatics Source Type: blogs