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Last Posted: Mar 26, 2024
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Super-precise CRISPR tool enters US clinical trials for the first time.
Heidi Ledford et al. Nature 2023 9

From the article: "A high-precision successor to CRISPR genome editing has reached a milestone: the technique, called base editing, has made its US debut in a clinical trial. The trial tests more complex genome edits than those performed in humans to date. Trial organizers announced that the first participant had been treated using immune cells with four base-edited genes, equipping the cells to better target and destroy tumors. The hope is that the approach can tame trial participants’ difficult-to-treat form of leukemia and serve as a gateway to more complex edits in the future. "

Older Patients With AML Less Likely to Receive Genomic Testing, Study Finds
P Steinzor, AJMC, August 29, 2023

From the article: "In a real-world setting of new and emerging targeted therapies, a study found that patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) had unmet needs that hindered their ability to receive genomic testing and treatment options, especially for older patients with AML. The analysis showed 13% of newly diagnosed patients with AML had evidence of a genomic sequencing report, which increased to 37% since 2016. Additionally, genomic testing was more likely to be performed in patients 60 years and younger compared with patients over 60 years."

A Revolution Is Coming to Medicine. Who Will It Leave Out?
J Tabery, NY Times, August 5, 2023

There are some diseases for which genetics is truly saving lives; in particular, patients with rare diseases like spinal muscular atrophy and certain cancers such as chronic myelogenous leukemia may now be prescribed personalized medicine treatments that simply didn’t exist a couple of decades ago. For most patients with most diseases, though, the lofty promises have failed to materialize.

Telomere Length and Clonal Hematopoiesis.
George Vassiliou et al. N Engl J Med 2023 5 (26) 2481-2484

A recent study proposes a key role for telomere maintenance in the development of clonal hematopoiesis. Some persons with clonal hematopoiesis are at increased risk for the development of myeloid cancers such as acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndromes, a risk that increases as the hematopoietic clone expands in size.16 Stopping this expansion may delay or avert leukemic progression, and therapeutic approaches to this end are being developed and tested.

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Disclaimer: Articles listed in the Public Health Genomics and Precision Health Knowledge Base are selected by the CDC Office of Public Health Genomics to provide current awareness of the literature and news. Inclusion in the update does not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor does it imply endorsement of the article's methods or findings. CDC and DHHS assume no responsibility for the factual accuracy of the items presented. The selection, omission, or content of items does not imply any endorsement or other position taken by CDC or DHHS. Opinion, findings and conclusions expressed by the original authors of items included in the update, or persons quoted therein, are strictly their own and are in no way meant to represent the opinion or views of CDC or DHHS. References to publications, news sources, and non-CDC Websites are provided solely for informational purposes and do not imply endorsement by CDC or DHHS.

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