title: Cancer diagnostic classifiers based on quantitative DNA methylation.
abstract: Epigenetic change is part of the carcinogenic process and a deep reservoir for biomarker discovery. Reversible methylation of cytosines is noteworthy because it can be measured accurately and easily by various molecular methods and DNA methylation patterns are linked to important tumourigenic pathways. Clinically relevant methylation changes are known in common human cancers such as cervix, prostate, breast, colon, bladder, stomach and lung. Differential methylation may have a central role in the development and outcome of most if not all human malignancies. The advent of deep sequencing holds great promise for epigenomics, with bioinformatics tools ready to reveal large numbers of new targets for prognosis and therapeutic intervention. This review focuses on two selected cancers, namely cervix and prostate, which illustrate the more general themes of epigenetic diagnostics in cancer. Also discussed is differential methylation of specific human and viral DNA targets and laboratory methods for measuring methylation biomarkers.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Cancer Prevention, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Queen Mary University of London, London, EC1M 6BQ, UK.
authors.forename: Attila T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Lorincz
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism*; D019175:DNA Methylation; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000379:methods; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor