“N of 1” case reports in the era of whole-genome sequencing
A. Rose Brannon, Charles L. Sawyers
A. Rose Brannon, Charles L. Sawyers
Published November 1, 2013; First published October 25, 2013
Citation Information: J Clin Invest. 2013;123(11):4568-4570. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI70935.
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Category: Commentary

“N of 1” case reports in the era of whole-genome sequencing

Abstract

Prostate cancer has a range of clinical outcomes, from complete remission in response to treatment to death as a result of aggressive metastasis. Prognosis for individuals with prostate cancer is not readily predictable, and new diagnostics will be useful for treatment strategy determination. In this issue of the JCI, Haffner and colleagues use comprehensive tumor genome sequencing to investigate the origin of genetic mutations underlying a case of lethal prostate cancer. Surprisingly, the lethal clone in this individual arose from a tumor focus that is typically considered very low risk based on histology. Their report highlights the need to collect and curate “N of 1” cases to develop a database that can be used for clinical decision making.

Authors

A. Rose Brannon, Charles L. Sawyers

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Figure 1

The potential for “N of 1” studies to benefit clinical practice will require collection of these cases into databases.

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The potential for “N of 1” studies to benefit clinical practice will req...
Genomics is a powerful tool for mapping tumor progression/evolution with great precision in individuals. Collecting these “N of 1” cases into a common database will help identify common patterns and enable more robust conclusions about cancer diagnosis and progression.