How Does Personalised Cancer Treatment Work?

Personalised cancer treatment aims to work by tailoring the course of prevention, screening and therapy specifically to the individual’s needs. This works by learning more about the biological makeup of the person and their tumour respectively, and then applying the treatment that theoretically will be most beneficial to them.

The aims of this type of cancer treatment are:

• Attempting to prevent cancer from taking root in the first place
• More effective and quicker treatment, eliminating the cancer as efficiently as possible
• Reduced side effects
• Reduced risk of a relapse

Previously, everyone received the same, standard treatment plan, regardless of his or her differing biological constitutions and needs. But, as our understanding of genetics increased, doctors have noticed that certain genes responded differently to certain types of treatment. Therefore, they have been able to specifically assign a particular course of treatment to a particular type of cancer. Though standard procedures, such as the surgical removal of tumours, are still commonplace, this can be integrated into a more personalised treatment plan.

Types of Personalised Cancer Treatment

There are several varieties of personalised cancer treatment. These include:

Targeted Treatment

This works by identifying and targeting the specific genes, protein or tissue of a cancerous cell and working out what prolongs and proliferates its survival and spread. Scientists are continuously working on identifying more and more types of cancer and conducting clinical trials to test drugs for each of these. Various forms of cancer, such as breast cancer, some types of leukaemia, lung cancer, melanoma, colorectal cancer and others have been the subject of such targeting and testing in recent years.

Pharmacogenics

Whereas targeted treatment works by testing the cancerous cell or tumour itself for specific genes, proteins and tissues, pharmacogenics works by analysing the reaction of the genes of the person themselves with certain drugs and treatments. Different people react to medication in different ways. For example, if a person absorbs the medication quickly, they may need more of it than someone whose slower processing time means that it stays in their bloodstream for longer. This is particularly pertinent when trying to reduce unwanted or harmful side-effects.

Personalised Cancer Treatment in Domestic Research

In the UK, studies into how different genes react to different methods of treatment have become widespread over the last decade. In 2009, King’s College London entered into a joint-venture with the Science and Technology Facility’s Council, receiving a funding grant of £4.5m to try and match the drugs to the situation. The venture is further discussed in the article Multi-Million Funded Experiments Could Lead to Revolution in Cancer Treatment.

Meanwhile, in 2012, Oxford Gene Technology announced they had received a grant of £1.6m in order to research more closely in tumour development and vulnerability. The article Tumour Profiling Assay Development to Facilitate Personalised Cancer Treatment talks about how the OGT expects to reduce sampling times and costs in more detail.