Bizarre tumor case may lead to custom cancer care

Your Health Matters

This 2008 picture provided by Georgetown University shows Richard Schlegel, M.D., Ph.D., left, and research associate Aleksandra Dakic, Ph.D., in his laboratory at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington. A discovery allows doctors to grow "mini tumors" from each patient's cancer in a lab dish, then test various drugs or combinations on them to see which works best. Although the approach needs much more testing, researchers think it could offer a cheap, simple way to personalize treatment without having to analyze each patient's genes. "We see a lot of potential for it," said Schlegel, one of the study leaders. "Almost everyone could do it easily." (AP Photo/Georgetown University)It's a medical nightmare: a 24-year-old man endures 350 surgeries since childhood to remove growths that keep coming back in his throat and have spread to his lungs, threatening his life. Now doctors have found a way to help him by way of a scientific coup that holds promise for millions of cancer patients.

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