Ontario Coordinates Mapping Cancer Genome
Canadian scientists will guide an international effort to map the genetic origins of cancer.
The International Cancer Genome Consortium will work with the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research in Toronto to coordinate the work of scientists around the world.
Dr. Tom Hudson, scientific director and president of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, said cataloging the genetic mutations involved in 50 types of cancer is too large a project to be undertaken by one country alone.
The consortium’s goal to map 50 cancer genomes is 25,000 times larger than the output of the Human Genome Project, Hudson told the Toronto Star.
The project is part of Ontario’s $3-billion innovation agenda aimed at building a stronger economy, creating high-quality jobs and improving life for people.