Genomics

Advances in the technology to read people’s DNA have made it so much faster and cheaper that we can now read the genetic code of many different genes at once, increasingly by sequencing the entire genome of a patient or their cancer.

Comparing a genome sequence from a tumour cell with one from a healthy cell allows our researchers to pinpoint the genetic changes that are involved in causing cancer, helping us to create new and improved treatments. We can also learn about genetic changes people inherit which may increase their risk of cancer, and this can lead to new ways of preventing the disease.

This page highlights recent news stories, blog posts and videos that concern the use of genomics technologies in cancer research.

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Recent stories on genomics technologies in cancer research

ICR scientists unveil AI-powered platform that helps researchers speed up biomarker discoveries for personalised cancer treatment

02/04/25

An ICR team has unveiled a cutting-edge research platform powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that will revolutionise cancer research by allowing researchers to integrate and analyse large and complex clinical trial datasets, speeding up the discovery of new cancer biomarkers.
Mini tumours grown from a bowel cancer
£5.5m research funding to transform bowel cancer care

30/03/25

Scientists from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, are part of a team of international researchers who have secured £5.5million in funding to find smarter, kinder treatments for people living with bowel cancer.
Breast cancer cells Credit Ewa Krawczyk 945x532
Breast cancer risk model provides reassuring data for those with family history of disease after short-term HRT use

31/01/25

Hormone replacement therapy taken at age 50 for up to 5 years only modestly increases the risk of breast cancer, even for women with a strong family history of the disease, according to a new risk model published in the British Journal of General Practice.
Mini tumours grown from a bowel cancer
Scientists create new way to predict bowel cancer risk in people with inflammatory bowel disease

30/01/25

Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, have found a way to identify people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) who are at the highest risk of developing bowel cancer.
Image: Blood samples. Credit: Ahmad Ardity via Pixabay
Genetic testing for Lynch Syndrome prevents cancers being missed

17/01/25

Genetic testing to identify women with Lynch Syndrome is likely to need to increase dramatically to ensure that carriers are not missed, a new analysis by ICR researchers has found.
Breast cancer cell
Scientific achievements of 2024

02/12/24

We've selected a range of discoveries from 2023/24 – chosen because they illustrate the quality and breadth of our basic, translational and clinical research and our ambitions under the ICR's research strategy.
High throughput DNA sequencing, Credit: National Cancer Institute via Unsplash
New genetic testing pathways could ensure patients get personalised treatments and help to catch more BRCA-linked cancer cases

30/09/24

Scientists have developed a new clinical pathway for testing for the cancer-causing faults in the BRCA gene that could ensure patients get the right treatment and boost the number of people who get tested.
AI-generated DNA. Credit: Ivana Tomášková from Pixabay.
Large-scale study confirms well-established cancer risk factors and identifies new ones

26/09/24

Researchers have examined thousands of genetically defined traits to identify possible causal relationships for eight common cancers.