Cancer Genome Project

Cancer Genetics & Genomics

Archive Page

This page is maintained as a historical record and is no longer being updated.

The Cancer Genome Project research group finished their work at the Sanger Institute in 2024. This page is no longer being updated but is being maintained as a historical record of the research of the group during its time at the Sanger Institute.

The Cancer Genome Project used high-throughput genome sequencing to identify these somatically acquired mutations with the aim of characterising cancer genes, mutational processes and patterns of clonal evolution in human tumours.

Cancer is caused by the genetic changes acquired by our cells as we go through life. We used cutting-edge DNA sequencing methods to identify these genetic changes, known as mutations, from human cancer samples. Our aim was to discover the genes that are frequently mutated in tumours, since these provide important insights into the biology of cancer. We also studied the patterns of mutations we see in cancer cells. These patterns represent a record of the cancer’s life history, and can illustrate the damaging factors the genome has been exposed to as the cancer has evolved from a normal cell.