Dr. Braghiroli on Individualization of Treatment in CRC

Maria Ignez Braghiroli, MD, medical oncologist, Instituto do Câncer do Estado de São Paulo, discusses the ways in which treatment can be individualized for patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) depending on the mutations they may harbor.

For example, explains Braghiroli, patients with RAS-mutated CRC do not seem to respond positively to anti-EGFR medications. Moreover, patients with BRAF-mutated disease generally tend to have a worse prognosis.

Multiple studies have focused on the respective efficacies of BRAF and MEK inhibitors, MEK inhibitors, as well as combinations of these agents. Overall, says Braghiroli, these various subgroups of patients will require individualized treatment approaches.