2007 Annual Report - Foundation for the National Institutes of Health

Targeted Cancer
Therapies Tutorials
Targeted therapies have been
developed for a number of
cancers, and new therapies are
in testing. The hope is that these
targeted therapies will eventually
allow certain cancers to be
treated as chronic conditions and
that, based on a patient’s specific
genetic make-up, physicians will
know which patients will respond
best to which targeted treatment.
With the help of Genentech, the Foundation for NIH is funding creation of
four tutorials on targeted cancer therapies. The animated tools, designed for use
by oncologists, oncology nurses, and other health professionals, will be posted
on the National Cancer Institute’s web site at www.cancer.gov.
Targeted therapies are drugs that block the growth and spread of cancer by
interfering with specific molecules within a cancer cell. Most targeted therapies
are still in the testing stages, but some are already in use. Because they focus
only on cancerous cell changes, they have the potential to be more effective and
produce fewer side effects than existing treatments.
Physicians will use the tutorials to explain and review treatment options with
their patients. The tutorials will explain what targeted therapies are, provide
information on clinical trials, encourage participation in the trials, and establish
targeted therapies as a standard of care.
The first tutorial will provide an overview of targeted therapies; the others
will each focus on a specific type of cancer and its targeted therapy: breast, lung,
or colon cancer.
Fluorodeoxyglucose-Positron Emission Tomography (FDG-PET)
measures efficient glucose utilization and can provide an early indication of
response to therapy. The FDG-PET lung and lymphoma projects being implemented
by The Biomarkers Consortium are anticipated to be the first in a series of initiatives to
improve the development of cancer therapies and the outcomes for cancer patients using
FDG-PET as a surrogate endpoint in the progression of cancer.
Foundation for the National Institutes of Health www.fnih.org | 17