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High-grade serous ovarian cancer is an aggressive form of ovarian cancer, characterized in particular by high diversity among the cells that compose a given tumor. This intratumor heterogeneity is a major challenge in understanding why some tumors respond to treatments and others resist. Additionally, this diversity is not limited to genetic differences: tumor cells that have similar genetic profiles may have different functions, depending on the genes they express and their epigenetic state.

To characterize this diversity, a research team from the CNRS, the Institut Curie and the Sorbonne Université used a sequencing approach at the scale of individual nuclei to analyze tumor cells individually and monitor how their molecular characteristics changed.

The study, appearing in the journal Cancer Discovery, was conducted in collaboration with startup One Biosciences, a spinoff from the Institut Curie co-founded by 2022 CNRS Innovation Medal laureate Céline Vallot, who is leading this study.

First, 150 tumor biopsies from biobanks underwent this analysis. Then the method was used on 16 patients, before and after treatment, over a period of three to six months, as part of the longitudinal study SCANDARE.

The scientists observed patterns in how cells changed according to treatment response. In patients whose tumors responded to treatment, the scientists saw tumor cell division decrease or even stop completely, along with a reduction in cells that activate interferon-response pathways .

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