RGD announces an updated Cancer & Neoplastic Disease Portal

RGD announces an updated Cancer & Neoplastic Disease Portal. Over 200 more genes not previously annotated have been identified and annotated with evidence for involvement in cancer. Particular emphasis was placed on gastrointestinal and respiratory tract cancers. Cancer is an ever increasing global health issue. Worldwide, the three cancers that killed the most people in 2020 were lung, colorectal, and liver cancer. Some cancers (such as liver, cervical, stomach) may be triggered by infectious agents, or environmental influences such as tobacco use or obesity. The study of cancer genomics has revealed abnormalities in genes that drive the development and growth of many cell types. This knowledge has improved our understanding of the biology of cancer and led to new methods of diagnosing and treating the disease. For example, a targeted drug, vemurafenib, has been approved to treat some melanoma patients with a specific mutation in the BRAF gene. Another example is mutations in the HER2 gene which have been associated with bladder, pancreatic and ovarian cancers in addition to breast cancer. Researchers have also shown that a given type of cancer may have molecular subtypes, which became clearer as researchers began to profile the genomes of tumor cells. This portal contains data for genes related to cancer and neoplastic diseases, and facilitates research using RGD tools designed for comparative analyses of diseases, and associated genes, strains, phenotypes, and other ontologies. In particular RGD’s Multi-Ontology Enrichment Tool (MOET) is embedded within each Disease Portal for analyses. Additionally, users can view and download genes annotated to disorders, view genes in genomic context, or compare them across any of ten species (rat, human, mouse, dog, pig, squirrel, bonobo, chinchilla, naked mole-rat, green monkey). Access is provided to analysis tools, rat strain models of disease, and related resource links. For the Cancer & Neoplastic Disease Portal, click HERE. RGD has also developed and previously released 14 other Disease Portals, which have a common landing page: Disease Portals Landing Page.