Articles related to BIOMARKERS

A literature review involving 24 recent studies yielded an update to ASCO’s recommendations on appropriate use of breast cancer biomarker assay results to guide adjuvant endocrine and chemotherapy decisions in early-stage breast cancer.

The lipid metabolism plays an important role in the development of cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes. However, little has been known about the molecular relationships. But now, a set of lipids have been statistically associated with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

In this case-control registry study of 63,828 patients with 14 common cancer types and 37,086 controls, pathogenic variants in BRCA1 were associated with biliary tract cancer, BRCA2 was associated with esophageal cancer, and combined BRCA1/2, with gastric cancer.

Predictive biomarkers are needed to identify patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) that could enjoy treatment de-escalation, with the attendant reduction in incidence of acute and late toxicities. In an observational study of consecutive patients with patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, pretreatment absolute lymphocyte count was predictive for 5-year overall survival. It also predicted benefit from the use of concurrent cisplatin chemotherapy.

The interpretation of genomic sequencing data is complex. Not all tumors have alterations within therapeutically targetable or actionable genes, and not all alterations detected within a therapeutically actionable gene may confer sensitivity to genomic biomarker–linked therapies. ASCO’s expert panel provides a provisional opinion, giving guidance on using genomic sequencing to inform treatment selection for patients with metastatic or advanced solid tumors.

This study involved 566 men and women between the ages of 28 and 97 years, who were patients in a preventive cardiology practice. The PULS Cardiac Test measures multiple protein biomarkers, including hepatocyte growth factor, soluble Fas, and IL-16, and uses the results to calculate a five-year risk score for new ACS. All factors more than doubled their prior above the norm level. The 5-year ACS PULS risk score more than doubled as a result.