The potential of circulating nucleic acids as components of companion diagnostics for predicting and monitoring chemotherapy response.
An effective personalized medicine is associated with the ability of identifying cancer patients who respond to anticancer targeted therapies. Therefore, new companion biomarkers that facilitate drug development are urgently needed. Since clinically relevant genetic and epigenetic alterations can be detected in cell-free nucleic acids in the blood circulation of cancer patients, these molecules may be a new promising class of potential liquid biomarkers. They can be obtained in real-time from blood, and their analyses could, consequently, facilitate treatment decisions. Screening of these liquid biopsies may provide information on the aberrant signaling pathway that should be blocked by the chosen targeted therapy. This article will discuss the potential of circulating nucleic acids as therapeutics for overcoming chemotherapeutic resistance in anticancer strategies.
Department of Tumour Biology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.
Heidi
H
Schwarzenbach
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000097:blood*; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D006801:Humans; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000097:blood*; D025202:Molecular Diagnostic Techniques; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics; D057285:Precision Medicine; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D035683:MicroRNAs
chemotherapy; circulating DNA; circulating miRNA; epigenetic alterations; genetic alterations; resistance; targeted therapy