oncology
Definition
Oncology is the medical specialty focused on the diagnosis, treatment, and research of cancer. It encompasses the study of tumor biology, including the molecular mechanisms driving uncontrolled cell proliferation, metastasis, immune evasion, and therapeutic resistance. Oncology integrates multiple disciplines including genomics, immunology, pharmacology, and systems biology to understand cancer heterogeneity and develop targeted interventions. Key concepts include oncogenes, tumor suppressor genes, cancer hallmarks, tumor microenvironment, and precision medicine approaches. Modern oncology increasingly relies on molecular profiling, biomarker discovery, and network-based analyses to identify vulnerabilities in cancer signaling pathways and predict treatment responses across diverse cancer types.
Visualize oncology in Nodes Bio
Researchers can visualize complex oncology networks including cancer signaling pathways, drug-target interactions, and gene regulatory networks driving tumorigenesis. Nodes Bio enables mapping of mutation landscapes to pathway perturbations, identifying key driver genes and their downstream effects. Users can integrate multi-omics data to reveal therapeutic vulnerabilities, visualize tumor-immune interactions, and explore mechanisms of drug resistance through network-based causal inference.
Visualization Ideas:
- Cancer signaling pathway networks showing oncogene and tumor suppressor interactions
- Drug-target-pathway networks for precision oncology and combination therapy design
- Tumor-immune cell interaction networks mapping checkpoint molecules and cytokine signaling
Example Use Case
A research team investigating resistance mechanisms in EGFR-mutant lung cancer uses network analysis to map signaling pathway rewiring after tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment. By integrating phosphoproteomics data with known protein-protein interactions, they identify compensatory activation of MET and AXL receptor pathways that bypass EGFR inhibition. Network visualization reveals unexpected crosstalk between these pathways and downstream PI3K/AKT signaling, suggesting rational combination therapy strategies. This systems-level view helps prioritize drug combinations for preclinical validation.