Researchers have developed a new tool that could help clinicians diagnose the most common type of breast cancer more accurately and make better treatment decisions. The tool, called EMBeddER (EMBER), integrates two types of datasets – previously not seen as compatible – to provide more comprehensive information about a person’s cancer.
In this study, led by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, the team integrated data from multiple RNA-based patient cohorts to create a comprehensive, shared visual ‘space’ to which new patient samples could easily be added. This allowed for a more precise interpretation of the disease, including the likelihood of a certain treatment being effective. Their work therefore paves the way for using RNA profiling as standard in clinical practice.
The research was funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme Marie Skłodowska-Curie and the charity Breast Cancer Now, which funds the Breast Cancer Now Toby Robins Research Centre based within the Division of Breast Cancer Research at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR). The findings were published in the journal npj Breast Cancer.
Credit: The Institute of Cancer Research