As part of a the National Cancer Moonshot Initiative (see IBO 2/15/16, 7/15/16, 10/31/16 and 12/31/16), the National Cancer Institute is funding a three-year pilot project involving sequencing precancerous growths in order to better understand how they evolve into diseases. The goal of the pilot project is to create a “pre-cancer genome atlas” by DNA sequencing from precancerous growths, as well as by RNA sequencing from individual tumor cells and examining the immune cells penetrating the lesions.

Additionally, a $5 million project funded by Stand Up to Cancer, the American Lung Association and LUNGevity was set up in late October to accelerate lung cancer research through sequencing DNA from precancerous lesions in the airway. The project will be funded over a five-year period.

Advancements in sequencing technologies have made it possible to sequence DNA from small samples, which is significant due to medical professionals usually making tiny biopsies of precancerous growths and the lack of tissue samples leftover after pathological analyses.

Source: Nature