BC Cancer Agency research finds genetic link between rare cancers

VANCOUVER — B.C. researchers have discovered that a single gene mutation is associated with several seemingly unrelated cancers that have never been linked before.
Their research raises the prospect of therapies being designed around the molecular nature of a tumour rather than the region of the body in which it occurs, said Dr. Gregg Morin, lead scientist from the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre at the BC Cancer Agency and one of the research team leaders. The team’s findings were reported in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday.

The researchers sequenced and analyzed the genomes of rare ovarian, testicular and uterine tumours, expecting to find specific and distinct abnormalities, said research team co-leader Dr. David Huntsman, a genetic pathologist and director of the Ovarian Cancer Program of BC at the BC Cancer Agency and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.