HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post - HER2 amplification predicts breast cancer recurrence but not overall survival

gdpawel · 01-30-2009, 01:43 PM

All the gene amplification studies can tell us is whether or not the cells are potentially susceptible to this mechanism of attack. They don’t tell you if one drug or combination is better or worse than some other drug or combination which may target this. There are differences.

The cell is a system, an integrated, interacting network of genes, proteins and other cellular constituents that produce functions. You need to analyze the systems’ response to drug treatments, not just one target or pathway.

Over the past few years, researchers have put enormous efforts into genetic profiling as a way of predicting patient response to targeted therapies. However, no gene-based test can discriminate differing levels of anti-tumor activity occurring among different targeted therapy drugs. Nor can an available gene-based test identify situations in which it is advantageous to combine a targeted drug with other types of conventional cancer drugs. So far, only a functional profiling has demonstrated this critical ability.

01-30-2009, 01:43 PM	#2
gdpawel Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 1,080	Gene Amplification Studies All the gene amplification studies can tell us is whether or not the cells are potentially susceptible to this mechanism of attack. They don’t tell you if one drug or combination is better or worse than some other drug or combination which may target this. There are differences. The cell is a system, an integrated, interacting network of genes, proteins and other cellular constituents that produce functions. You need to analyze the systems’ response to drug treatments, not just one target or pathway. Over the past few years, researchers have put enormous efforts into genetic profiling as a way of predicting patient response to targeted therapies. However, no gene-based test can discriminate differing levels of anti-tumor activity occurring among different targeted therapy drugs. Nor can an available gene-based test identify situations in which it is advantageous to combine a targeted drug with other types of conventional cancer drugs. So far, only a functional profiling has demonstrated this critical ability.