One of the first uses is genetic screening for a predisposition to developing cancer. For example, women can be tested for the presence of a gene linked to breast cancer. If they have it, they can be more vigilant about examination and early detection of tumors.

But what excites researchers most is developing treatments based on genetic information. Can tumor suppressor genes be fixed in some way so they function normally? Or can healthy ones simply be injected into cancerous cells? Can oncogenes be "turned off" by genetic manipulation? Can more hunter-killer genes be introduced into cells where there aren?t enough?

Before those kinds of treatments can become reality, more work has to be done. According to researcher Kenneth Kinzler, PhD, there are between five and 10 genetic changes that must be understood better in colon cancer alone. Some are critical to determining if a predisposition to colon cancer exists. In 1997, leading researcher Bert Vogelstein, MD, and Dr. Kinzler announced their lab had linked a common but very subtle gene mutation for an inherited predisposition to colon cancer among Ashkenazi Jews.

Other changes are critical to the actual progression from a healthy cell to a cancerous one. But research into colon cancer is well ahead of research into other types of cancer.

The cancer detectives have made an enormous amount of progress in a relatively short amount of time. They have reoriented cancer research worldwide. Now they have learned how the cancer engine operates, and more efficient ways to shut it off may be around the corner.

"It?s satisfying that progress has been made, but the real goal is helping the people," said Dr. Vogelstein, reflecting on a little girl with brain cancer he treated early in his career. "Finding the cause is an extremely important step on the road, but it?s difficult to celebrate success when there are so many people dying. We have to translate this genetic revolution into real gains for patients. There?s still much work to be done."