Yutaka Maeda, DVM, Ph.D.

Although lung cancer treatment aims to eradicate tumor cells, in many cases, tumor cells recur after treatment. Identification of recurring lung tumors cells is needed so as not to miss eradicating even one tumor cell. It has been technically difficult to isolate and analyze such cells at the single-cell level. In the past two years, single cell-sequencing technology has been developed and enables scientists to capture individual tumor cells and analyze their genetic profiles. We will use this technology to identify the "Achilles' heel" of individual lung tumor cells, including recurring tumor cell populations, and develop strategies to eradicate every tumor cell.