Cancer treatment has evolved dramatically over the decades, yet many patients remain unaware of critical flaws in the standard approach to selecting therapies. At Nagourney Cancer Institute, Dr. Robert Nagourney's pioneering work with Functional Profiling has addressed these fundamental issues, offering patients a more personalized and effective path forward.
Here are five uncomfortable truths about conventional cancer treatment that Functional Profiling directly addresses:
1. Most Cancer Treatments Are Selected Based on Population Statistics, Not Your Unique Biology
When oncologists recommend chemotherapy regimens, they typically rely on statistical outcomes from large clinical trials. These trials tell us what works for the "average" patient—but no one is average. Your cancer has its own unique biology and response patterns.
How Functional Profiling Fixes This: By testing your actual living cancer cells against potential treatments in the laboratory, Functional Profiling determines which drugs or combinations will be effective for YOUR specific cancer. This replaces population-based guesswork with personalized evidence.
2. Your Genetic Mutations Don't Always Predict Treatment Response
The cancer industry has heavily invested in genetic testing (genomics), suggesting that identifying mutations will lead to effective targeted therapies. Despite the hype, according to a recent study only 7.04% of all cancer patients treated with Genomically(DNA)-selected therapies actually respond (Haslam, Annals of Oncology, 2021)
How Functional Profiling Fixes This: Instead of just predicting what might work based on genetics, Functional Profiling directly observes how your cancer cells respond when exposed to various drugs. This measures actual drug effect rather than theoretical response, capturing the complex biological interactions that genetics alone cannot predict.
3. Many Patients Endure Toxic Side Effects from Treatments That Never Had a Chance of Working
Standard protocols often require patients to try (and fail) multiple treatments before moving to alternatives. Each unsuccessful treatment cycle brings debilitating side effects, wasted time, and allows the cancer to potentially grow more resistant.
How Functional Profiling Fixes This: By identifying ineffective treatments before they're administered, Functional Profiling helps patients avoid unnecessary suffering and toxic exposure. More importantly, it directs patients toward treatments with the highest probability of success from the start.
4. Combination Therapies Are Often Selected Through Trial and Error
Modern cancer treatment frequently involves combinations of drugs, but determining which combinations work synergistically for a specific patient's cancer is nearly impossible through conventional methods.
How Functional Profiling Fixes This: Dr. Nagourney's laboratory can test various drug combinations directly against your cancer cells, identifying synergistic effects that might never be discovered through standard clinical approaches. This has led to breakthrough combination treatments for patients who had exhausted all standard options.
5. Time Lost to Ineffective Treatment Cannot Be Recovered
Perhaps the most devastating truth about conventional cancer treatment is that time spent on ineffective therapies cannot be reclaimed. For aggressive cancers, this lost time can be the difference between life and death.
How Functional Profiling Fixes This: With results available in approximately 7 days, Functional Profiling provides critical treatment guidance quickly. This allows patients and their oncologists to move directly to therapies with the highest probability of success, potentially saving precious months that would otherwise be lost to trial-and-error approaches.
A Path Forward
For decades, Dr. Robert Nagourney has championed this patient-centered approach to cancer treatment selection. Patients who undergo Functional Profiling at Nagourney Cancer Institute receive a detailed report showing which treatments their cancer responded to best, providing them and their oncologists with powerful information to guide treatment decisions.
Even patients with advanced disease or those told they have "no options left" have found effective treatments through this approach. The laboratory has identified successful treatments for patients with pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer, and many other malignancies when standard approaches had failed.
Don't let your cancer treatment be based on guesswork. Visit NagourneyCancerInstitute.com to learn more about how Functional Profiling can help identify the most effective treatment for your unique cancer.
Your life is too important to rely on statistical averages. Get the personalized approach you deserve.
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