Biomarker discovery in epithelial ovarian cancer by genomic approaches.
Ovarian cancer is the fifth most common form of cancer in women in the United States. It is a complex disease composed of different histological grades and histological types. Most of epithelial ovarian cancer cases are detected at an advanced stage. Patients usually respond to primary treatment with surgery and chemotherapy. However, the disease usually recurs and is ultimately fatal. So far, a satisfactory screening procedure and regime to treat the recurrence disease are not available. High-throughput genomic analyses have the potential to change the detection and the treatment of ovarian neoplasms. They can help diagnose subtypes of disease and predict patient survival. New diagnostic and prognostic markers for ovarian cancer are emerging. One day, profiling may influence treatment decisions, informing both which patients should receive chemotherapy and what type of chemotherapeutic agents should be employed. As greater numbers of tumor samples are analyzed, the power of these profiling studies will increase, raising the possibility that novel molecular targets and less toxic therapies will be identified. These powerful techniques hold the potential to unravel the genetic origins of ovarian cancer. Hopefully, this will translate into earlier diagnosis and better patient outcome from disease.
Mok
Samuel C
SC
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology, Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Elias
Kevin M
KM
Wong
Kwong-Kwok
KK
Ho
Kae
K
Bonome
Tomas
T
Birrer
Michael J
MJ
D000818:Animals; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D023281:Genomics / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D009375:Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics*; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics*
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor