Lung Cancer Alliance Hails National Cancer Institute's Lung Cancer Selection For Cancer Genome Atlas Pilot Project
Posted on: Wednesday, 13 September 2006, 12:00 CDT
WASHINGTON, Sept. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Lung Cancer Alliance hailed the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute's (NHGRI) announcement of their decision to include lung adenocarcinoma as one of three cancer tissue types in its first-ever pilot project to catalogue genetic changes in human cancers.
The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) pilot project is a joint project of the NCI and the NHGRI. NHGRI is the government entity that sequenced the human genome. The Atlas will commence its study later this year or early next year.
"This is exciting news for the lung cancer community," said Laurie Fenton, President, Lung Cancer Alliance. "For too long, lung cancer has been ignored, under-funded and under-researched given its massive public health impact. I am delighted that the overseers of this project acknowledged this shortcoming. Let us hope this novel research can map discoveries and, ultimately, cures for this most lethal of all cancers."
Lung adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancer. The Atlas pilot project goal is to sequence the genome of this disease. This research will tell us how mistakes in a cell's genetic instructions lead to lung cancer, how to prevent it from spreading and how to prevent recurrence. While scientists have already discovered some "genetic signatures" of lung cancer, such as the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) mutations, there are many more in lung cancer to uncover.
The pilot project is expected to take three years. This process will use and further develop existing genetic research resources including carefully preserved cancer tissue donated by patients.
Lung Cancer Alliance served on the Expert Technical Panel on Biospecimen Evaluation which advised TCGA's Management Team. This panel aided in assessing different sources of cancer tumor samples that the Atlas considered using in the pilot project.
The Lung Cancer Alliance (http://www.lungcanceralliance.org/) is the only national non-profit organization solely dedicated to patient support and advocacy for people living with, or at risk for, lung cancer. As the number one cancer killer, lung cancer will kill more than 160,000 Americans this year alone, causing more deaths than breast, prostate, colon, liver, kidney cancers and melanoma combined.
For more information on The Cancer Genome Atlas: http://cancergenome.nih.gov/index.asp
Please visit a graphic view of how the Atlas will work: http://cancergenome.nih.gov/about/process.asp
Lung Cancer Alliance
CONTACT: Kay Cofrancesco of Lung Cancer Alliance, +1-202-463-2080, cell:+1-302-521-5716, or kcofrancesco@lungcanceralliance.org
Source: PRNewswire
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