GHSU Sees Into Future With Genome Sequencing

Researchers at Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Center are making major headway in human genome sequencing.

GHSU is the only cancer research center in the state which can sequence the entire genome in 24 hours at the price of $6,000.

Until recently, the cost was more than$20,000 to sequence a single genome.

And thanks to that technological advancement, researchers believe it will pave the wave to develop more targeted therapies for cancer.

"If you get your genome sequenced and you find out you've got a predisposition to a heart problem or you're going to develop breast cancer or you're going to get ovarian cancer, you might want to know and work proactively against that early in your life," said Dr. Lesleyann Hawthorn.

Dr. Hawthorn adds the first draft of the human genome took 13 years and billions of dollars to sequence.

Although theFDA isn't covering the procedure in Georgia, she hopes the next step is to make this affordable and accessible for area residents.

"I think it's important in Georgia because heart disease is a big problem here. Breast cancer is a big problem, prostrate,"she added."There are a lot of things that we want to focus that are Georgia-specific that we want to develop sequencing for."

She compares the procedure to looking into a crystal ball.

She can also see why this proactive treatment method may not be for everyone.

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GHSU Sees Into Future With Genome Sequencing