Health · Medical Research · 1 hr ago
Gene-targeted treatment shrinks tumours in some advanced cancers
Stephen Huff was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer at age 29 after a scan for shortness of breath.
His cancer had spread to several places, including his neck, spine, liver and brain.
Doctors used genetic testing to find the mutation driving his tumour, rather than choosing treatment only by where the cancer began or how its cells looked.
That result made Huff eligible for a recently approved drug aimed at that specific genetic change.
His first scan showed that nearly all his tumours had shrunk or disappeared, and he began feeling better within weeks.
Older chemotherapy drugs can damage healthy cells as well as cancer cells, while treatment based on a tumour’s genetic changes can target a specific cause.
This approach is offering new options for some hard-to-treat cancers, including lung, pancreatic and brain cancers.
The account gives no next treatment step for Huff or wider timeline for the approach.
A gene-targeted treatment helped shrink or eliminate tumours in Stephen Huff, who had stage 4 lung cancer.
Huff’s first scan after starting the drug showed that nearly every tumour site had shrunk or disappeared.
The treatment was chosen after testing identified the genetic alteration driving his cancer.
The approach, known as precision oncology, targets cancer-related genes rather than relying only on the tumour’s location or appearance.
Scientists began laying the groundwork for precision oncology in the 1990s and early 2000s.
- Who
- Stephen Huff, a 29-year-old with stage 4 lung cancer, received the treatment.
- What
- A gene-targeted drug was used to treat his cancer, and his first scan showed tumours had shrunk or disappeared.
- When
- The first scan showing the response was within weeks of starting treatment. The date is not stated.
- Where
- Not stated.
- Why
- Testing identified the genetic alteration driving Huff’s cancer, allowing doctors to select a drug that targeted it.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Scientists discovered genes that could spur cancer, planting the first seeds of precision oncology.
Huff’s scan found stage 4 lung cancer, and testing identified the genetic alteration driving it.
Huff began to feel better.
The scan showed that nearly every tumour site had shrunk or disappeared.
- Patient
- Stephen Huff
- Age at diagnosis
- 29
- Diagnosis
- Stage 4 lung cancer
- Treatment approach
- Precision oncology targeting the genetic alteration driving the tumour
- Response
- Within weeks, Huff’s first scan showed tumours had shrunk or disappeared
- Groundwork
- Precision oncology’s first seeds were planted in the 1990s and early 2000s
What people are saying
My first scan showed that basically every tumour site had either shrunk or gone away completely.
I didn’t know if I’d be here in six months.
Being able to identify exactly what makes a cancer tick is having an incredible impact.
Cancer is fundamentally a genetic disease.
Sources
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