Personalized medicine

Cancer is a complex disease that differs even among patients with the same type of tumour. Improving patient outcomes and reducing the burden of disease on society requires an understanding that treatment should be guided not only by clinical symptoms but by knowledge of molecular, genetic and functional alterations specific to the patient.

Predictive genomic tests will identify those patients who will respond to a particular treatment. This will avoid unnecessary treatment and be more cost-effective for the health care system.

Advances in imaging, genomics, bioinformatics and nanotechnology are providing the knowledge and tools necessary to develop the next generation of personalized cancer interventions. OICR's translational and clinical research activities have been strategically chosen to focus on areas of the highest potential impact. Over the last year, work has been done to implement genomic tools in a clinical setting, develop targeted drugs, train bioinformatics specialists, enhance imaging technologies, identify the genetic mutations in different types of cancer, and on how new knowledge can be used to change clinical practice.