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Scientists at the University of Michigan, Stanford University, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Center used various strategies for tumor selection and analysis, but each identified differences in the clinical behavior of tumors in a subset of early stage lung cancer patients whose tumors were indistinguishable using existing tests.
The results need to be confirmed in a larger data set, and NCI is already supporting that effort. To gain access to the numbers of specimens needed to confirm the initial results, the new study is being carried out. A data comparability study showed that the data from the study sites were of high quality and comparable, so a large study of 600 specimens is under way. Results are expected in late 2004.
If the combined study confirms that molecular profiles can predict patient outcome, physicians will have a new tool for selecting the most appropriate therapy for each patient. Those patients whose profiles predict a poor outcome might benefit from more aggressive treatment. The profiles may also identify new molecular changes that could be targets for novel therapies.
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