Breast Cancer Stem Cells (Image Credit: University of Michigan) , Adopted from TumorGen MDx

One in two men and one in three women will be diagnosed with cancer. But what is cancer?  Cancer is a set of complex diseases. The origins of cancer typically begin with a break in the DNA (mutations) within our cells. The DNA mutations, result in erroneous signaling messages to the cells causing uncontrolled or unregulated cell growth. New research on tumors using next generation DNA sequencing technology seems to indicate each person’s cancer is genetically unique. The treatment implications from these findings are profound since it suggests therapy should be tailored to the individual patient. This paradigm is commonly referred to as ‘Personalized Medicine’ but is also called ‘Precision Medicine’.  Cancer metastasis, beyond the primary tumor, is a killer. Greater than 90% of the deaths related to cancer, are due to the metastatic processes within cancer.  Watch this five-minute video that explains cancer in everyday terms.

Source: TumorGen MDx