Dr. Pecora on the Taxane-Induced Neuropathy Study

Andrew L. Pecora, MD, FACP, CPE the Chief Innovations Officer, Professor and Vice President of Cancer Services at John Theurer Cancer Center talks about the taxane-induced neuropathy study.

Dr. Pecora says one of the more exciting developments over the past few years has been the ability to look into the genome. By looking at what DNA is doing and looking at the consequences of DNA's actions in the cancer cell (or a normal cell), determine outcomes for treatments or toxicity of treatments. Using a genomic test, a physician can predict which patients are at risk for taxane-induced neuropathy. Dr. Pecora says taxane-induced neuropathy is a problem for a small percentage of patients who receive taxanes, and it would be wonderful to predict who they would be so the physician could avoid (or at least limit) their use in those circumstances.