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By Fergus Walsh

Medical editor

Analysing the entire genetic code of cancer patients can help deliver treatments that work better for the individual, experts have found.

In the biggest study of its kind, with 13,000 cancer patients in England, combining clinical data and DNA evidence meant care could be tailored.

Based on the results, some were given different drugs or avoided ones likely to cause them side effects.

Most brain tumours had genetics that affected treatment decisions.

In the study, published in Nature Medicine, more than nine out of every 10 brain tumours and most bowel and lung cancers exhibited genetic changes that could guide decisions about surgery or specific treatments.

Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analyses someone's entire genetic code - all 3.2 billion letters that make up their DNA.

Cancer patients have:

the baseline "healthy" genome they inherited from both parents - here, the DNA is extracted via a blood test