QUB hail 'breakthrough' in fight against bowel cancer
Queen's University Belfast claims a breakthrough has been made in research into bowel cancer treatment.
Last updated 31st May 2017
The research, carried out in conjunction with the University of Oxford and the University of Leeds, has led to the belief that personalised medicine could be the way forward.
Dr Philip Dunne, Senior Research Fellow at QUB said: “Through analysing the molecular and genetic data generated from patient tissue samples, we have discovered that there are different sub-types of bowel cancer.
"This research unequivocally identifies robust gene signatures that can be used to inform patient management. It will allow us to identify particular gene signatures that indicate sensitivity or resistance to specific therapies.
"Thus, we can tailor treatment to the individual patient, maximising its effectiveness while minimising potential side effects.”
Dr Catherine Pickworth, science information officer at Cancer Research UK, a funder of the study, added: “Personalised medicine aims to give the best treatment to each patient, sparing people unnecessary therapy if it won't help.
“This study is a step forward in achieving this, giving us genetic signatures to look out for in bowel cancer patients.
"The next steps will be to find out which treatment works best for each genetic signatures so that cancer treatments can be tailored to each patient, so they have the best chance of beating cancer.”
Bowel cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the UK, with 41,200 people newly diagnosed each year.
A number of treatment options are available but mortality rates remain high, with bowel cancer the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK.
The new discovery means that doctors should be able to determine whether a patient would require chemotherapy and its harmful side effects or not.