Gene-signature tools to better match cancer patients with treatments
An innovative integrated computational framework using gene signatures for patient stratification
This project builds computer tools that use a tumor's DNA changes and gene activity to group cancer patients and suggest which treatments might work best for them.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Baylor College of Medicine NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11238551 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will build statistical models that link genomic changes (like mutations or copy-number changes) to how genes are turned on or off in tumors, creating gene 'signatures' that reflect the cancer pathways driving each patient's tumor. They will apply these methods to large public human cancer datasets (for example TCGA, ICGC, and TARGET) to define comprehensive signatures across several major cancer types. The signatures are designed to capture pathway changes caused by different mechanisms, not just one type of mutation, so they may better reflect what is actually driving a tumor. The team will use these patterns to group patients by underlying biology, which could help point to prognosis differences or treatment strategies.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Patients whose tumors have genomic sequencing and gene expression (RNA) data, or who can donate tumor samples to repositories that generate those data, would be most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: Patients without tumor genomic or RNA expression data, or those with cancer types not covered by the signature set, are less likely to benefit directly from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help doctors pick treatments that are more likely to work for an individual patient's tumor biology.
How similar studies have performed: Related approaches using genomic markers and gene-expression signatures have shown promise in some cancers but have not yet been widely adopted across all tumor types, so this work builds on promising but still-developing methods.
Where this research is happening
Houston, United States
- Baylor College of Medicine — Houston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Cheng, Chao — Baylor College of Medicine
- Study coordinator: Cheng, Chao
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.