Mapping the cancer patient journey with liquid biopsy

Pancreatic cancer cells with blue nuclei forming a sphere surrounded by red membranes in a lab setting. [Credit: National Cancer Institute]

According to the American Cancer Society, one in two men and one in three women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. Patients seek treatment to shrink their tumors and ideally achieve remission; however, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. At its core, cancer is a genetic disease: Different types of cancer that affect specific organs or systems can share genetic qualities, but every individual can also carry unique mutations that affect how their tumor behaves. Therefore, molecular testing has a critical role to play in all stages of cancer treatment, from developing new drugs to delivering these as treatments. 

The promise of molecular testing approaches

Over the years, increasingly complex molecular testing approaches have gained favor in the fie…

Read more
  • 0

Understanding cellular heterogeneity and its implications for disease diagnosis and treatment

[Anusorn/Adobe Stock]

Cellular heterogeneity enables cells in the body to perform an array of functions, but it also plays a role in diseases like cancer as well. In oncology, this fact influences molecular therapy targets, tumor evolution as well as drug sensitivity and resistance. Cellular heterogeneity is also a consideration in areas such as immunotherapy, neuroscience, stem cell research and infectious diseases. By probing cellular heterogeneity in diseased tissues, drug developers can help uncover potential molecular targets for treatment, highlight varying drug sensitivities and unravel the mechanisms responsible for treatment resistance.

To learn more about the importance of cellular heterogeneity, we recently conducted an email interview with two executives at Bio-Rad Laboratories, Mina Zeinali, single cell field application specialist and Joby Chesnick, senior segment manager, single cell technologies …

Read more
  • 0