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NEW DELHI: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras has established a first-of-its kind Centre of Excellence that is undertaking research to develop biomarkers for early detection of pancreatic cancer, according to officials.
The sequence data from the Centre of Excellence on Cancer Genomics and Molecular Therapeutics will help develop an India-specific cancer genome database, which is critical to identify and develop biomarkers for early detection and understanding the drug response. The data developed could also help to identify drug targets for novel therapeutics, the officials added.
Pancreatic Cancer (PDAC) is the fourth leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide and is projected to be the second within a decade. Since the cancer rate is very high, most pharmaceutical companies are on the lookout for Indian-specific cancer genome data to establish biomarkers for specific therapeutics.
Since there is no Indian population-specific cancer genome data available today and all studies are based on what is available from the Western population, the patient survival rate is very low compared to Western societies due to genomic heterogeneity.
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