Work

Somatic mutation signatures of cancer.

Year: 2008

Type: article

Abstract: The advancement of cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment would be hastened via a robust method to identify patterns that indicate a tumor's state. Prior research has established that sporadic, colorectal-cancer pathogenesis involves a series of genetic mutations that allow benign polyps to develop and eventually progress to malignant tumors in distinguishable patterns. Using a publicly available database of somatic mutations for many cancer types, we identified somatic-mutation signatures. Our results for colorectal cancer are consistent with what extant biological models as described in the literature. This approach is potentially useful for identifying previously undiscovered patterns and generating hypotheses related to biological pathways. Such signatures could prove valuable for eventual translation into clinical practice.

Source: PubMed Central

Authors: Stephen R Piccolo, Lewis J Frey

Institution: University of Utah

Language: English

Topic: Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics

Subfield: Cancer Research

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: U.S. National Library of Medicine

Award: University of Utah Biomedical Informatics Training Grant