title: Serum Tumor Markers in Stage I-II Breast Cancer.
abstract: The prognosis of breast cancer is strongly influenced by the stage of the disease; therefore, it is essential that breast cancer lesions be diagnosed at the earliest stages. There is an urgent need to identify different biomarkers with a high accuracy for the early detection of this cancer to facilitate clinical management of the disease. A wide number of substances named serum tumor markers can be detected in the serum of patients with breast cancer, including tumor-associated proteins, cytokines, stimulating or inhibiting factors, autoantibodies to antigen tumor-associated substances and miRNAs. Despite ASCO and NACB recommendations, the routine use of breast cancer tumor markers by a significant proportion of oncologists is common, particularly after primary treatment of early tumors. The new promising circulating markers are HER2/neu, Trx 1, CSF1, autoantibodies against these tumor-associated antigens, and miRNAs, which are non-coding RNA molecules that regulate the translation of mRNA and control a number of biological processes, including oncogenic cells proliferation. The expression of single miRNA results in a miRNA signature, and is considered a potential biomarker for early breast cancer. However, additional studies are needed to identify its real usefulness.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Pathology Laboratory, Department of Laboratory Medicine, S. Maria degli Angeli Hospital, Via Montereale 24, 33170 Pordenone, Italy. renato.tozzoli@aas5.sanita.fvg.it.
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tozzoli
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: D'Aurizio
authors.forename: Flavio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Falcomer
authors.forename: Stefano M M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Basso
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lumachi
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009367:Neoplasm Staging
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor