Targeted cancer therapies for every patient who could benefit.

Variant classification for patient stratification, label expansion, and resistance anticipation.

Today, most targeted cancer trials enrol only patients carrying clear loss-of-function variants — a fraction of the population that could respond. Patients with Variants of Uncertain Significance are excluded, and even well-established pathogenic variants are stratified more coarsely than the underlying biology demands. We use geneSlice to classify gene variants at scale, so drug developers can stratify patients more accurately, expand trial eligibility, and anticipate resistance — across any cancer indication.

The VUS gap

Clinical limbo for the majority of variants.

For clinically actionable cancer genes, clearly pathogenic variants represent only a fraction of patients with variants in the target. The remainder — splice-site variants, late-gene frameshifts, and the large class of missense VUS — sit in clinical limbo. Their functional impact is uncharacterised. They are excluded from trials and lose a treatment opportunity that variant-level data could unlock.

Figure
VUS prevalence across key DDR genes — ATM, BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, BRIP1
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VUS prevalence across key DDR genes. [Source data to be selected by Ruben/Arne.]
What we deliver

Three angles on variant data

Variant classification for trial recruitment & stratification

Functional databases of variant-level drug sensitivity across your target gene. Trial recruitment can extend beyond clear LOF variants to include functionally validated VUS; stratification can match variant biology to drug response. This is the core Oncology service.

Synthetic lethal target validation & per-variant studies

For target discovery work and per-variant arrayed studies — including full cell viability curves and dose-response — see Custom Services.

Resistance anticipation

For residue-level resistance mapping of a specific compound, see Compound–Target Assay.

Figure
BRCA2 variant functional map
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Functional classification of BRCA2 variants from foundational work by team member Zhenya Ivakine (Ivakine et al, 2022).
Worked example

BRCA2 and PARP inhibitors

BRCA2 carries hundreds of variants of uncertain significance. PARP inhibitors are licensed for patients with clear loss-of-function variants, but the unclassified majority remain outside that label. Functional classification — scoring each variant for its effect on BRCA2 function and PARP-inhibitor sensitivity — converts that unclassified majority into actionable clinical data.

How a project runs

Standard geneSlice pipeline

Consultation → cell line development (~6 mo) → variant library and screening (~6 mo) → data delivery. Typically 6–12 months. See Technology.

Discuss your oncology programme.

Talk to our team about your gene target, variant space, and trial design.

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