Germany Starts its Part in the International Cancer Genome Project
Want to listen to this article for FREE?
Complete the form below to unlock access to ALL audio articles.
Read time: 2 minutes
The Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the German Cancer Aid will provide funds of 15 million euros.
Brain tumors are the primary cause of cancer mortality in children. Even if a cure is possible, young patients often suffer tremendously from the stressful treatment which can be harmful to the developing brain. Therefore, there is an urgent need for target-oriented, gentle treatment methods.
The most important childhood brain tumors are medulloblastoma, which is diagnosed in approximately one hundred young patients each year in Germany, and pylocytic astrocytoma, which is diagnosed in about 200 children each year.
"Regarding these two conditions, in particular, we have done good preliminary work and have already compiled comprehensive tumor sample collections," explains Professor Peter Lichter, coordinator of the German ICGC network.
The German ICGC research network will analyze 300 tumor samples of each cancer type. In addition, researchers will analyze the same number of healthy samples obtained from the same patients so as to be able to identify cancer-specific changes. In the more common adult cancers, ICGC regulations even require the investigation of 500 samples of each type of cancer.
The decisive factor for the start of the International Cancer Genome Consortium were U.S. studies of colorectal cancer and breast cancer which showed that in each individual tumor considerably more mutations are crucial for carcinogenesis than scientists had previously assumed. Furthermore, individual tumors of one and the same type of cancer have substantially different mutation profiles. This may lead to totally new treatment approaches in each individual case; in some cases, a cocktail of several targeted drugs might also improve the chances of cure.
The various tasks of the German ICGC network are headed by internationally acclaimed experts. The common goal is a very comprehensive molecular analysis of the tumors. Thus, besides targets for new therapies, scientists are also trying to identify biomarkers which facilitate earlier and more precise diagnosis. In addition, researchers expect to find molecular indicators of the effectiveness of particular treatments and expected side effects.
"Especially in children, we urgently need to avoid treatments that are not successful, because they suffer particularly from the dangerous late effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy," says pediatrician and molecular biologist Stefan Pfister, who is one of the project leaders.
Using different methods, researchers are now capturing the sequence of DNA building blocks in the nuclei of the cells. The sequence of DNA segments containing the blueprints for proteins is analyzed separately. In another subproject, researchers study which DNA regions are silenced by chemical labels called epigenetic mutations. Yet another research group studies the small RNA molecules which regulate the activity of individual genes.
"Parts of the sequencing work will be commissioned to specialized companies. In a pilot phase, we have already tested this with GATC Biotech AG in Constance," Peter Lichter explains. "Rapid technological progress causes prices for DNA sequencing to fall continuously. Therefore, we always contract out for only six months so that we can reduce the costs for the whole project."
Scientists from five leading research institutes in Heidelberg are taking part in the project: From the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ), the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Heidelberg University and the University Hospitals and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). In addition, scientists from Düsseldorf University Hospitals and the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have taken on tasks within the network project.
Brain tumors are the primary cause of cancer mortality in children. Even if a cure is possible, young patients often suffer tremendously from the stressful treatment which can be harmful to the developing brain. Therefore, there is an urgent need for target-oriented, gentle treatment methods.
The most important childhood brain tumors are medulloblastoma, which is diagnosed in approximately one hundred young patients each year in Germany, and pylocytic astrocytoma, which is diagnosed in about 200 children each year.
"Regarding these two conditions, in particular, we have done good preliminary work and have already compiled comprehensive tumor sample collections," explains Professor Peter Lichter, coordinator of the German ICGC network.
The German ICGC research network will analyze 300 tumor samples of each cancer type. In addition, researchers will analyze the same number of healthy samples obtained from the same patients so as to be able to identify cancer-specific changes. In the more common adult cancers, ICGC regulations even require the investigation of 500 samples of each type of cancer.
The decisive factor for the start of the International Cancer Genome Consortium were U.S. studies of colorectal cancer and breast cancer which showed that in each individual tumor considerably more mutations are crucial for carcinogenesis than scientists had previously assumed. Furthermore, individual tumors of one and the same type of cancer have substantially different mutation profiles. This may lead to totally new treatment approaches in each individual case; in some cases, a cocktail of several targeted drugs might also improve the chances of cure.
The various tasks of the German ICGC network are headed by internationally acclaimed experts. The common goal is a very comprehensive molecular analysis of the tumors. Thus, besides targets for new therapies, scientists are also trying to identify biomarkers which facilitate earlier and more precise diagnosis. In addition, researchers expect to find molecular indicators of the effectiveness of particular treatments and expected side effects.
"Especially in children, we urgently need to avoid treatments that are not successful, because they suffer particularly from the dangerous late effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy," says pediatrician and molecular biologist Stefan Pfister, who is one of the project leaders.
Using different methods, researchers are now capturing the sequence of DNA building blocks in the nuclei of the cells. The sequence of DNA segments containing the blueprints for proteins is analyzed separately. In another subproject, researchers study which DNA regions are silenced by chemical labels called epigenetic mutations. Yet another research group studies the small RNA molecules which regulate the activity of individual genes.
"Parts of the sequencing work will be commissioned to specialized companies. In a pilot phase, we have already tested this with GATC Biotech AG in Constance," Peter Lichter explains. "Rapid technological progress causes prices for DNA sequencing to fall continuously. Therefore, we always contract out for only six months so that we can reduce the costs for the whole project."
Scientists from five leading research institutes in Heidelberg are taking part in the project: From the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ), the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Heidelberg University and the University Hospitals and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). In addition, scientists from Düsseldorf University Hospitals and the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have taken on tasks within the network project.
