If You Have Ovarian Cancer, Will You Benefit from Genetic Testing and Genomic Sequencing?
For patients with ovarian cancer and other types of cancer, there are two avenues of testing that involve a close look at your DNA – that hereditary helix found in each human cell that contains each person’s individual genetic code.
“To date, our approach with genetic and genomic testing has been more of a blanket approach. As this science evolves, we’ll discover more targets and genetic sites on the tumor to explore for effective therapy,” said Luis Rojas, MD, with Avera Medical Group Gynecologic Oncology at Avera Cancer Institute in Sioux Falls.
What Is Genetic Testing?
One is germline DNA testing, also known as genetic testing. This looks for inherited mutations in your DNA that have been present since birth. At Avera, this type of testing is coupled with genetic counseling. A genetic counselor can help you understand your family history, what genetic testing looks for and whether or not your family members might benefit from genetic testing.
Genetic testing can find inherited predispositions to certain types of cancers. The BRCA 1 and 2 mutations increase someone’s risk for ovarian, breast and other cancers. Other inherited mutations can cause Lynch syndrome, which can lead to colon, ovarian and other cancers.
Genetic testing and counseling can help you understand if you have risk for other types of cancers. It can also inform treatment. If someone has a BRCA mutation, she might benefit from an emerging class of drugs known as PARP inhibitors. PARP inhibitors keep cancers from growing by blocking their ability to repair DNA, ultimately killing off cancer cells.
What Is Genomic Sequencing
Genomic sequencing involves sequencing your normal cell DNA and the DNA of the tumor cells, looking for mutations that have occurred. This type of testing can help inform treatment and predict a patient’s response to a type of therapy, like PARP inhibitors, which are effective for certain patients but not a “magic bullet” for all types of ovarian cancer.
“In the past, cancer care has been ‘one size fits all,’” said David Starks, MD, MPH, Avera Medical Group gynecologic oncologist. “That’s why we would see an amazing response to treatment in one patient, and no response at all in another patient. Someday, we hope to be able to tell patients that based on your genomic sequencing, here is your personalized treatment package. We’re not at that level yet, but we’re closer than ever before, and this is where cancer care is heading. Right now we’re using genomic information to our best possible advantage to help patients experience the best possible outcomes.”
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