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Ten years of research and more than 900 samples processed: a study on kidney cancer carried out in particular by researchers in Montreal would make it possible to more precisely assess the risks of recurrence by observing the mutations of the tumor.
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At least that is what emerges from international research conducted by 44 researchers – including several from McGill University – over more than ten years.
The researchers thus determined that the study of the mutations present in a cancerous kidney tumor removed by surgery might make it possible to more precisely evaluate the risk of recurrence in a patient.
Because each year, more than 400,000 individuals are diagnosed with kidney cancer worldwide, including 8,100 in Canada and 81,800 in the United States, said the Montreal university in a press release.
“Our work reveals that we might be able to better assess individual risk by studying the genetic mutations present in cancerous tissues,” said Yasser Riazalhosseini, head of the Cancer Genomics Unit at the Victor-Phillip Institute of Genomic Medicine. -Dahdaleh from McGill University.
During the study, the researchers looked at more than 900 samples, following each of the patients to determine if there were mutations, and if so, in which of the defined genes. Then, they compared the data with the recurrences.
Thus, we might “easily” analyze the mutations by sequencing the DNA of patients with kidney cancer, a procedure already performed in other types of cancers, said Dr. Riazalhosseini.
This would avoid heavy treatment for those who do not need it. Currently, treating physicians rely on the size of the tumor and its apparent aggressiveness on microscopic examination.
“It is very important to accurately establish the risk of cancer recurrence. This information […] allows us to determine whether immunotherapy is indicated. This treatment has recently been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of recurrence, but it is not without side effects. Currently there is a risk of over-treatment,” explained Dr Naveen Vasudev, associate professor and volunteer consultant in medical oncology at the University of Leeds Medical Research Institute.