Workshop on cancer biometrics: identifying biomarkers and surrogates of cancer in patients: a meeting held at the Masur Auditorium, National Institutes of Health.
The current excitement about molecular targeted therapies has driven much of the recent dialog in cancer diagnosis and treatment. Particularly in the biologic therapy of cancer, identifiable antigenic T-cell targets restricted by MHC molecules and the related novel stress molecules such as MICA/B and Letal allow a degree of precision previously unknown in cancer therapy. We have previously held workshops on immunologic monitoring and angiogenesis monitoring. This workshop was designed to discuss the state of the art in identification of biomarkers and surrogates of tumor in patients with cancer, with particular emphasis on assays within the blood and tumor. We distinguish this from immunologic monitoring in the sense that it is primarily a measure of the tumor burden as opposed to the immune response to it. Recommendations for intensive investigation and targeted funding to enable such strategies were developed in seven areas: genomic analysis; detection of molecular markers in peripheral blood and lymph node by tumor capture and RT-PCR; serum, plasma, and tumor proteomics; immune polymorphisms; high content screening using flow and imaging cytometry; immunohistochemistry and tissue microarrays; and assessment of immune infiltrate and necrosis in tumors. Concrete recommendations for current application and enabling further development in cancer biometrics are summarized. This will allow a more informed, rapid, and accurate assessment of novel cancer therapies.
Lotze
Michael T
MT
Translational Research, University of Pittsburgh Molecular Medicine Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Wang
Ena
E
Marincola
Francesco M
FM
Hanna
Nabil
N
Bugelski
Peter J
PJ
Burns
Christine A
CA
Coukos
George
G
Damle
Nitin
N
Godfrey
Tony E
TE
Howell
W Martin
WM
Panelli
Monica C
MC
Perricone
Michael A
MA
Petricoin
Emanuel F
EF
Sauter
Guido
G
Scheibenbogen
Carmen
C
Shivers
Steven C
SC
Taylor
D Lansing
DL
Weinstein
John N
JN
Whiteside
Theresa L
TL
D017398:Alternative Splicing; D015415:Biomarkers; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods*; D004247:DNA / Q000378:metabolism; D019175:DNA Methylation; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D020407:Internet; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D015166:Monitoring, Immunologic; D009336:Necrosis; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011485:Protein Binding; D040901:Proteomics; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014018:Tissue Distribution
D015415:Biomarkers; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D004247:DNA