New cancer classification system shows promise as lifesaver
Classifying cancer tumors by their molecular structure rather than the tissue or organ where they were found, such as the breast or bladder, may lead to more accurate diagnoses and potentially better treatments and outcomes for patients, a new study finds.Well Josh, let me guess for you- those cancers are caused by the same microbes no matter what tissue they land in. And most of them are periodontal pathogens.
"The old system classifying cancer by the tissue of where it arose is outdated. It's been in existence for over 100 years now, and we know it doesn't merit the true nature of the cancer," said Dr. Christopher Benz...
They found that in many of the cancer types, such as an aggressive form of brain tumor known as glioblastoma and a type of leukemia, the tumor samples matched up well with the tissue classifications, suggesting that a tumor's location is still important for certain types of cancers.
But with other cancer types, tumor samples on a molecular level appeared to look more like unrelated cancers. For example, a significant number of squamous head-and-neck cancers looked more like some squamous-cell cancers found in the lung.
"How we use that information for treatment is anybody's guess right now," said Josh Stuart, professor of biomolecular engineering at UC Santa Cruz and a senior author of the paper.
Just guessing.
