A physician partner at Oregon Oncology Specialist and affiliate assistant professor at Oregon Health Sciences University, Natasha Tiffany, MD, has been practicing medicine for upwards of two decades. During that time, Natasha Tiffany, MD, has become familiar with treating a range of cancers, such as lung cancer and breast cancer.
The results of a recent study published in Science Translational Medicine revealed a new blood test that could help physicians better monitor women with early stage breast cancer to prevent recurrence. Known as TARDIS, or targeted digital sequencing, the test was developed by researchers from the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen). Scientists created the test by sequencing tumor biopsy tissue from more than 30 women with different stages of breast cancer. Based on these samples, scientists isolated potential mutations that were unique to the cancer cells, and identified founder mutations. These founder mutations were subsequently used to create a personalized assay of each patient that could identify breast cancer DNA in blood samples. Initial studies of the new test found that TARDIS was capable of finding tumor DNA in all patient blood samples. Existing liquid biopsies were only successful in finding this DNA in 50 to 75 percent of patients. The test successfully identified tumor DNA when blood concentration was as low as 0.003 percent, making TARDIS 100 times more sensitive than other tests. While more research is still needed to determine the efficacy and accuracy of TARDIS, researchers find the initial results promising. An increased ability to track tumor development in women with breast cancer would help physicians create more targeted treatment and therapy options. Further, the test would assure patients and physicians that tumor DNA was no longer in the body, and help some women avoid surgery altogether.
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AuthorNatasha Tiffany, MD, is a physician, educator, and research scientist currently working in Oregon. A Partner and Physician in a private practice located in the state’s capital city of Salem, Dr. Tiffany teaches at her alma mater, Oregon Health & Science University, where she is an Affiliate Assistant Professor in the Hematology and Medical Oncology Division. Archives
October 2019
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