Kittering's Pao, who was not involved with the new research, says the results are promising. "If this kind of technique can be applied in the clinic, it would be very useful," he says. "A lot of tumor samples from patients are limited in quantity, so it's crucial to be able to take a minute amount of tumor cells and detect mutations."

The technology was launched commercially last year, and 20 or so systems have already been sold, according to Michael Egholm, the company's vice president of molecular biology.

The outfit is one of several companies striving to create fast, accurate, and affordable sequencing methods, which could ultimately have a broad impact on both cancer research and clinical practice. Last year, the National Institutes of Health (the nation's premier biomedical funding agency) announced a project to create an atlas of genetic mutations in selected types of tumors. The number and types of tumors that can be sequenced will depend largely on the speed, accuracy, and cost of new sequencing methods . . .

"We think in a few years, we'll have a catalogue of genes involved in cancer," says Larry Thompson, a spokesman for the National Human Genome Research Institute, one of the sponsors of the atlas project. "Then we should be able to develop new diagnostic tests and new targets."

"The more these technology companies move forward with improving the technology and driving down the cost," he adds, "the more rapidly they will reach the clinic."

[Courtesy: MIT Technology Review]

Unless Moore's Law has been repealed, one thing is virtually certain: the cost will decline, allowing widespread adoption.