Genes and Cancer

Today's medical news:

Scientists have discovered that the most dangerous cancer of the uterine lining closely resembles the worst ovarian and breast cancers, providing the most telling evidence yet that cancer will increasingly be seen as a disease defined primarily by its genetic fingerprint rather than just by the organ where it originated.

I think the development of genetic profiles for dangerous cancers is important. Today doctors spend hours pouring over x-rays of tumors or suspicious tissues, trying to figure out which ones represent a threat, or they stare through microscopes at the cells from biopsies. Sometimes the result is clear, but very often it is not. Plenty of studies have shown that radiologists disagree on which breast scans show cancer, for example.

But if this could be resolved by sequencing the genes from a tumor cell, that would be huge progress. And since our prowess at rapidly sequencing DNA is still growing by leaps and bounds, look for rapid developments in this field.