Way to diagnose aggressiveness of oral cancer found

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

Researchers may have discovered a means to predict the aggressiveness of oral cancer. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine reviewed tumor samples from mice and also analyzed genetic data from human oral cancer samples, and they found a consistent gene signature at work. Tumors were induced in the test mice via application of a carcinogen, rather than via genetic means, to better simulate the human model. Many of the gene mutations found in the mice were also found in the humans tested. Further testing determined that 120 genes were associated with the aggressive cancer, in both mice and people.


Patients with oral cancer respond differently to different treatments, some responding better to different combinations of chemotherapy, surgery, or radiation. This research could be a solid first step to determining how individual patients may respond and learning to predict response to treatment.