The first step in choosing the appropriate treatment for a cancer patient is to identify their specific type of cancer, including determining the primary site: the organ or part of the body where the cancer begins.

In rare cases, the cancer’s origin can’t be determined, even with extensive testing. Although these cancers of unknown primary tend to be aggressive, oncologists must treat them with nontargeted therapies, which frequently have harsh toxicities and result in low rates of survival.

A new deep-learning approach developed by researchers at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) may help classify cancers of unknown primary by taking a closer look the gene expression programs related to early cell development and differentiation.

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