In two parallel studies, Ralph J. DeBerardinis, MD, PhD (Damon Runyon Clinical Investigator ‘11-‘14) of UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, and Matthew G. Vander Heiden, MD, PhD (Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovator ‘11-‘13, Fellow ‘06-‘08) of MIT, Cambridge, and colleagues, reported the use of noninvasive imaging technology (magnetic resonance spectroscopy) to visualize whether glioma brain tumors have a particular genetic mutation called IDH. Several pharmaceutical companies are currently developing drugs that target IDH, with the goal of halting tumor growth. Knowing whether brain tumors have the IDH mutation will enable physicians to choose appropriate treatments and monitor whether potential drugs are effective. These studies were published in the journals Nature Medicine and Science Translational Medicine, respectively.
