Step-by-step guides, research summaries, and treatment overviews β reviewed by oncology navigators and written clearly for patients, families, and caregivers.
From newly diagnosed to relapsed and refractory β we publish what patients actually need to understand their options.
What are you looking for today?
CancerFax Insights exists because cancer patients face decisions that are genuinely hard β not because of lack of will, but because the information landscape is fragmented, fast-moving, and often written for clinicians, not families.
Every insight published here is reviewed by our oncology navigation team before it goes live. We focus on the questions patients actually ask us: What is this treatment? Who qualifies? What should I prepare? What should I ask my doctor?
Use the search and filters below to find what's most relevant to your situation.
Step-by-step patient guide
Before agreeing to CAR-T therapy, families need to understand eligibility criteria, the manufacturing timeline, expected side effects, and what happens if the therapy fails. This guide walks through every question your team should be able to answer.
Browse by the topic most relevant to where you are in your cancer journey right now.
Compare options, evaluate trade-offs, understand what questions to ask before agreeing to a specific protocol.
How trial matching works, eligibility logic explained, document checklists, and what to expect during screening.
NGS testing, biomarker-based treatment matching, liquid biopsy, tumour mutation burden, and targeted therapy guides.
Cross-border treatment pathways, China and India access, visa planning, cost estimates, and logistics walk-throughs.
Practical guides for families, partners, and adult children walking alongside someone in cancer treatment.
How to prepare records, frame clinical questions, compare opinions, and navigate specialist review across borders.
Search, filter, and explore all published insights β by cancer type, treatment category, clinical trial readiness, or stage of your journey.
Search across cancer types, treatments, mutations, drugs, and trials
Precision Oncology
The limitations of NGS testing are real and worth understanding. They do not cancel the clinical value -- they define the conditions under which results should be interpreted. Standard DNA panels may miss gene fusions better detected by RNA sequencing. A single biopsy samples one region at one timepoint. Liquid biopsy has reduced sensitivity in low-shedding tumours. A negative result means not detected -- not definitively absent.
Precision Oncology
Comprehensive genomic profiling list prices in the US range from $3,000-$7,500. Medicare covers comprehensive NGS for advanced solid tumours under a National Coverage Determination. Most testing laboratories (Foundation Medicine, Guardant Health, Tempus) have patient assistance programmes that reduce or eliminate cost based on financial need. Prior authorization denials are frequently overturned on appeal.
Precision Oncology
Rare cancer patients who have been told that limited options exist should know: the question precision oncology asks is not whether your cancer type has a matched drug, but whether your tumour carries a molecular feature that has a matched drug regardless of cancer type. Tumour-agnostic approvals (MSI-H, NTRK fusions, TMB-high, RET fusions) apply to any solid tumour carrying the feature.
Precision Oncology
The questions worth asking about NGS results differ by what is being decided. Before the results appointment: is the testing picture complete (comprehensive NGS, TMB, MSI, RNA sequencing)? During the results appointment: which findings are Tier I? Is there an FDA-approved drug? A tumour-agnostic approval? Currently enrolling basket trials? After: should this case go to a molecular tumour board?
Targeted Therapy
EGFR mutations are found in 10-15% of NSCLC in Western populations and up to 50% in East Asia. ALK rearrangements in 3-5%. Osimertinib is the preferred first-line EGFR inhibitor with median PFS of 18-20 months and strong CNS activity. Lorlatinib achieves median PFS exceeding 4 years in ALK-rearranged NSCLC. Comprehensive NGS testing before any systemic treatment is global standard of care.
Stage 4 Cancer
Targeted therapy for stage 4 cancer requires a molecular target to be present. Comprehensive NGS testing before first-line treatment identifies which options apply. In molecularly matched patients, response rates, depth of response, and duration frequently exceed chemotherapy. Some EGFR-mutated stage 4 NSCLC patients on osimertinib have been disease-free at five years.
Precision Oncology
NGS (next-generation sequencing) sequences hundreds of cancer-relevant genes simultaneously from a single tumour sample, replacing the old approach of testing one gene at a time. A comprehensive panel test returns results in 2-3 weeks, covers all established targetable alterations, and also assesses TMB and MSI for immunotherapy eligibility.
Precision Oncology
Earlier is almost always better for comprehensive genomic profiling in advanced cancer. Many targeted therapy approvals are first-line standards -- the molecularly matched therapy is the best initial treatment, not the rescue option after chemotherapy fails. Testing before first-line treatment is finalized means results are available when they can change the first decision.
Where are you in your cancer journey? Find insights matched to your current situation.
Understand your diagnosis, staging, reports, and first-line options before making major decisions.
Read newly-diagnosed insightsExplore second opinions, molecular testing, clinical trials, and international advanced options.
Explore next-step insightsLearn how trial matching, eligibility review, and mutation-based screening actually work.
View clinical trial insightsUnderstand how destination, treatment availability, cost, and expertise shape cross-border decisions.
Compare destinationsCurated reading lists for patients going deep into a specific treatment category or clinical question.
Cell & gene therapy
Precision oncology
Advanced radiation & local therapies
Explore insights and guides organised by the treatment modality most relevant to your case.
Find content specific to your diagnosis β from treatment overviews to clinical trial access and second opinion guidance.
Clinical trial access
CancerFax connects patients with clinical trials in China, India, and leading global centres β including phase I and II trials closed to international enrolment through standard channels.
500+
active clinical trials across China, India, and leading global centres
40+
cancer types with current advanced therapy access pathways
12+
years of patient navigation experience in cross-border oncology
Insights our navigation team recommends most often to patients starting their research.
Treatment guide Β· 8 min
02Second opinion Β· 6 min
03Precision oncology Β· 10 min
04Clinical trials Β· 7 min
05Clinical trials Β· 9 min
06Precision oncology Β· 5 min
A note from the CancerFax team
CancerFax Insights is editorially independent of the hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and treatment centres we work with. Our navigation team writes what patients need to hear β not what any institution wants them to read.
That means we tell patients when a treatment is likely out of reach, when a clinical trial has closed, and when the evidence for a new therapy is still thin. We believe informed patients make better decisions and have better outcomes β even when the honest answer is harder to hear.
β CancerFax oncology navigation team
How our content is produced, reviewed, and how to use it effectively.
Our oncology navigators review your medical records, explain your options in plain language, and help you access the right specialists, trials, and treatment centres β wherever you are in the world.
Every navigation request is reviewed by a qualified oncology professional. We do not recommend treatments without reviewing your medical records.
