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somatic testing

(soh-MA-tik TES-ting)

A laboratory method that looks for genetic changes in cells or tissues of the body that have occurred during a person’s lifetime and were not inherited from a parent. Somatic testing is done on a tumor or blood sample to look for certain genetic changes in the tumor’s DNA. This may help doctors learn more about the cancer, plan treatment, predict how well the cancer will respond to treatment, or make a prognosis. Somatic testing may sometimes be called tumor testing or biomarker testing.

somatic testing

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