Genetic testing could 'improve lung cancer survival'

Survival rates for patients that are diagnosed with lung cancer could be vastly improved by genetic testing, according to a new study. Research, published in the journal 'Science Translational Medicine', has found that the genetic profiling of lung tumours helped to improve survival rates of patients.

The study included 5,000 patients diagnosed with lung cancer and found that by offering a personalised treatment to them, their chances of survival were improved. Genetic profiling of tumours allowed for chemotherapy treatment to be better targeted at the tumours, which resulted in a higher chance of tumour shrinkage.

While the process still needs further development, according to Cancer Research UK, it has shown great potential and could ultimately improve the chances of those that are diagnosed with this hard-to-treat disease. 

Standard lung cancer diagnosis involves classifying tumours into different categories after examining tumour cells under a microscope. Once the tumour is classified, a course of treatment that is usually best suited to that type of cancer is prescribed by the doctor.

Over the last few years steps have been taken to match the individual tumour with the right treatment in order to get better results for patients. Scientists have worked towards identifying the drugs that would be best suited to the tumour type by looking at its genetic makeup. 

Genetic testing of 5,000 samples for lung cancer tumours was carried out by researchers from the Max Planck Research Group in Germany. The team, which was led by Doctor Roman Thomas, discovered that although some tumours may look similar when their cells are examined, they belong to different tumour groups. This means that some patients may have been receiving the wrong type of treatment for the cancer they have.

It was found that basing treatment upon the genetic profiling of individual tumours resulted in better outcomes, according to the study. The researchers have suggested that implementing this new way of assessing tumour types could improve the survival rates of lung cancer patients.