Oncompass Medicine is not a therapeutic centre. We do not conduct treatments, nor we make therapeutic decisions. Our goal is the identification of the molecular points of attack and the presentation of the therapeutic options. The therapeutic options, the targeted active substances (based on the expected efficiency or on the contrary) and the molecular points of attack are ranked (prioritized).
The core document of our service is the molecular report, that introduces the detailed molecular information and the therapeutic conclusions in a written form. The report also contains a summary of opinions that informs the clinical oncologists and oncoteams about the therapeutic options based on the report. The decision about the therapeutic options established by us can only be made by the clinical oncologists, but obviously, the information the decision is based on is of high importance. The report and the summary of its opinion is made for the therapists, however, we find it extremely important that you can also understand the options discovered in the Program to the necessary extent. Therefore, as a separate point of the program we provide a so-called PRECISION ONCOLOGY OPINION. We have signed an agreement with several clinical oncologists to provide precision oncology opinion with establishing external consultation points. During that, the assessment of therapeutic options can take place in a relaxed environment, giving you the opportunity to ask further questions and provide appropriate professional answers.
The opinion is a secondary opinion at the same time that further enhances the utility of the Program, as besides your therapists independent experts can also evaluate the options. The precision oncology opinion is provided in a written form. This clinical opinion can help your therapists in establishing the therapeutic strategy since for the clinical interpretations ONCOMPASS only contracts therapists who are so-called precision oncologists, which means that besides open-mindedness, these professionals have enough experience in precision oncology services also. The primary goal of the opinion is to inform you. Our procedure pays special attention to informing the centre that handles the treatment and the therapists, with the involvement of expert colleagues.
WHAT TYPE OF THERAPEUTIC OPTIONS BECOME AVAILABLE FOR ME WITH YOUR HELP?
In the age of molecular oncology, it became possible to treat the tumours with substances that can be targeted instead, or besides chemotherapy. We call these substances targeted because they are aimed at a defined type of molecule of the tumour: these are defective polypeptides and with the synthesis or the hindrance of their effect the "grow and divide" command that is heading towards the control center of the cells can be stopped, so it will not reach the nucleus.
This means that the growth of the tumour can be stopped. In order to map the personalized therapy options, the understanding of the tumour's behavior on a molecular level is required. Based on the evaluation of hundreds of active substances, the therapy options are arranged into two big groups by our special software: indicated therapy options and contraindicated therapy options. It is of high importance to understand that the molecular information facilitates the most accurate determination of the therapy strategy in all cases, regardless of its actual content. In other words, the results can be utilized even in cases when our report does not discover new targeted therapy options, because in such cases it reinforces that the originally planned targeted therapy, or other, not targeted therapies, for example the chemotherapy that are in accordance with the protocol procedure, is the best personalized treatment.
Moreover, one of the highlighted utilization of our report is when it does not recommend the application of targeted treatment(s) that could be given based on the protocol, but according to our detailed precision oncology survey indicates the inefficiency of that substance. In such case, based on a lot more precise genetic map, we receive the evaluation of our unique decision support software, the result of which can be significantly different from the options listed by the molecular diagnostics based on a few genes.
This means that our program could discover molecular correlations, that can prevent you from participating in an ineffective treatment. This means that the results can be utilized in the following ways: indication and reinforcement of the targeted therapy in accordance with the protocol, indication and reinforcement of a not targeted treatment in accordance with the protocol, contraindication of the targeted treatment based on the protocol, contraindication of a not targeted treatment based on the protocol, indicating a targeted treatment beyond the protocol. It is important to highlight, that the indication or the contraindication of a treatment based on molecular information does not guarantee the effectiveness or the ineffectiveness of the given treatment.
The method facilitates making the right decision based on the available molecular diagnostic examinations and scientific evidences. In order to make an even better decision the calculator assigns a relative weighing to the calculation, that helps the team of therapists to decide about the priority of the given treatment in comparison with the other options.
This makes it possible that based on the molecular profile there are indicated treatments, and the team of therapists decide to select another one, if there are other types available that have a bigger efficiency (for example chemotherapy or radiotherapy). In such cases the indicated targeted treatments are often used later in the therapy. In some cases the team of therapists decide on a treatment that is contraindicated according to the molecular profile, if there is no other treatment option available.
During the Oncompass Precision Oncology procedure the Molecular Tumor Board and the therapist establish the treatment strategy together. The essence of the precision oncology is that it is not the location of the tumor that determines the treatment, but the gene malfunction that causes the tumor. This opens the door for medication that is not registered for your type of cancer, but has on effect on the genetic mutation that you have. The drug development is a very long process. There is a long way to go from the molecular testing of a promising medication until its registration as a drug.
There are almost 2 000 active substances at the moment in the world. Our special software is capable of selecting the clinical examinations based on a variety of aspects, such as the category of the active substance or its geographical availability, the phase of the development or other. Substances available in foreign clinical examinations. You can have a view on the international options besides your local ones.
