Using DNA, radiation therapy gets personal
Elie Dolgin • September 23, 2016
Gene-based tests aim to predict who will benefit from radiation, or suffer.
At most cancer hospitals today, medical oncologists routinely order genetic tests that help guide their treatment decisions. If the tumor has a certain DNA mutation, the patient may be a good candidate for a targeted drug therapy; if it overexpresses a series of genes, chemotherapy might work well. But down the hallway in the radiation ward, cancer patients typically get a one-size-fits-all course of radiotherapy, regardless of their genetics or those of their cancer.
A small but increasing number of radiation oncologists is hoping to change that.
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