Bio 110 Writing Assignment #3
The Power of DNA Analysis
In the world of medicine and disease there is one disease that is as well known as it is deadly: Cancer. Many people understand the severity of cancer and how it attacks the immune system and ultimately can kill a person. The war on cancer was started in 1971 by President Nixon and this set of four decades worth of study and has lead to a large amount of information being learned about the cancer genome. A new strategy has recently surfaced and is gaining ground, DNA analysis of the cancer-ridden cells. In order for a cell to become cancerous it usually under goes a mutation to its genetic code. It then begins to grow and multiple without stopping. It than begins to invade or take over other cells those causing the cancer to spread. A cell can become cancerous through many different factors, a constant exposure to tobacco or ultra violet rays or even an inherited genetic anomaly. What doctors would traditional do is fight the cancer with chemotherapy or by trying to remove the tumor with knives and lasers. Usually this could lead to some controversy because this type of treatment is generalized and does not work well for the specific cases. Cancer is typically attacked with the same drugs and procedures and is the same for each patient. The type of cancer or the specific patients case generally does not affect the process and this can cause the cancer to return in some cases. The traditional method can be effective in many cases but is not a guaranteed cure.
Scientists are now using DNA analysis to translate the DNA ATGC sequence. They use this to help find out what is the actual cause of the mutations that create the uncontrollable cell division. By looking at the genome of the DNA they can find out the cause and make specific treatments. This differs from the traditional treatment because the traditional method was generalized and not specific to the patient. DNA analysis can