Genetic analysis of biopsies taken from the primary tumour, brain metastases and normal tissues of 104 adults with cancer found that, in every patient, the brain metastasis and primary tumour shared some of their genetics, but there were key differences. In 56% of patients, genetic alterations that potentially could be targeted with drugs were found in the brain metastasis but not in the primary tumour. In addition, it was found that if a patient had more than one brain metastasis, each was genetically similar and this data were used to map the evolution of a cancer through a patients body.
Presented at the European Cancer Conference (ECC) 2015 by Priscilla Kaliopi Brastianos, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
European Medical Journal
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