Dr. Raanan Berger heads the Department of Oncology of one of the largest Israeli medical centers - Sheba. Professor shared information about the use of personalized protocols for treatment of cancer.
Personal therapy is actively used in Israel - a treatment that is appropriate for a specific patient in a particular case. Specialists create a proper protocol basing on the results of genetic studies and after detection of the type of mutations in the tumor. In a special laboratory, the genome and the molecular structure of the tumor tissue are studied. It makes possible to determine disease stages development and select a biological medication. It must be suitable for a specific patient and do not cause or minimize side effects. After all, doctors need to treat a patient, not a disease!
For example, the mutation of TSC-1 gene is detected in patients with bladder cancer. In this case, the target drug Afinitor is prescribed. This medication can prevent the development of the tumor caused by this gene.
Patients with prostate cancer become resistant to hormonal drugs: the tumor begins to produce testosterone, so it is necessary to prescribe certain drugs that block its secretion.
Doctors-oncologists select the most effective drug and detect the predicted result after applying of different therapies. For this, the patient’s tumor cells are implanted in mice, and specialists test various combinations of drugs on the animals. Then doctors choose several variants of the treatment. After tests on mice, they select treatment plan with potentially the best effect. It should be mentioned that a personalized approach requires significant charges: a human resource and the advanced technologies.