Liquid biopsies in lung cancer: the new ambrosia of researchers

Christian Rolfo; Marta Castiglia; David Hong; Riccardo Alessandro; Inge Mertens; Geert Baggerman; Karen Zwaenepoel; Ignacio Gil-Bazo; Francesco Passiglia; Anna P Carreca; Simona Taverna; Renza Vento; Daniele Santini; Marc Peeters; Antonio Russo; Patrick Pauwels

doi:10.1016/j.bbcan.2014.10.001

Liquid biopsies in lung cancer: the new ambrosia of researchers

Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014 Dec;1846(2):539-46. doi: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2014.10.001. Epub 2014 Oct 16.

Authors

Christian Rolfo¹, Marta Castiglia², David Hong³, Riccardo Alessandro⁴, Inge Mertens⁵, Geert Baggerman⁵, Karen Zwaenepoel⁶, Ignacio Gil-Bazo⁷, Francesco Passiglia⁸, Anna P Carreca⁹, Simona Taverna⁴, Renza Vento¹⁰, Daniele Santini¹¹, Marc Peeters¹², Antonio Russo¹³, Patrick Pauwels⁶

Affiliations

¹ Phase I - Early Clinical Trials Unit, Oncology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Molecular Pathology Unit, Pathology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium; Department of Surgical, Oncological and Oral Sciences, Section of Medical Oncology, University of Palermo, Via Liborio Giuffrè 5, Palermo 90127, Italy.
³ Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics (Phase I Program), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Holcombe Blvd 1400, Unit 455, Houston 77030, USA.
⁴ Department of Biopathology and Medical and Forensic Biotechnologies, Section of Biology and Genetics, University of Palermo, Via Divisi 81-85, 90133 Palermo, Italy.
⁵ Center for Proteomics, VITO, Boeretang 200, Mol, BE-2400, Belgium, Antwerp University, Groenenborgerlaan 171, Antwerpen 2020, Belgium.
⁶ Molecular Pathology Unit, Pathology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium.
⁷ Lung Cancer Unit, Department of Oncology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Avenida Pío XII 36, Pamplona 31008, Spain.
⁸ Phase I - Early Clinical Trials Unit, Oncology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium; Department of Surgical, Oncological and Oral Sciences, Section of Medical Oncology, University of Palermo, Via Liborio Giuffrè 5, Palermo 90127, Italy.
⁹ Phase I - Early Clinical Trials Unit, Oncology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium; Molecular Pathology Unit, Pathology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium.
¹⁰ Laboratory of Biochemistry, Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, Polyclinic, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Ed. 13, 90128 Palermo, Italy.
¹¹ Medical Oncology Department, University Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy.
¹² Oncology Department, Antwerp University Hospital, Wilrijkstraat 10, Edegem 2650, Belgium.
¹³ Department of Surgical, Oncological and Oral Sciences, Section of Medical Oncology, University of Palermo, Via Liborio Giuffrè 5, Palermo 90127, Italy.

PMID: 25444714
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2014.10.001

Abstract

In the last decades the approach to cancer patient management has been deeply revolutionized. We are moving from a "one-fits-all" strategy to the "personalized medicine" based on the molecular characterization of the tumor. In this new era it is becoming more and more clear that the monitoring of the disease is fundamental for the success of the treatment, thus there is the need of new biomarker discovery. More precisely in the last years the scientific community has started to use the term "liquid biopsy". A liquid biopsy is a liquid biomarker that can be easily isolated from many body fluids (blood, saliva, urine, ascites, pleural effusion, etc.) and, as well as a tissue biopsy, a representative of the tissue from which it is spread. In this review we will focus our attention on circulating tumor cells, circulating tumor DNA, exosomes and secretomes with the aim to underlie their usefulness and potential application in a clinical setting for lung cancer patient management.

Keywords: Biomarkers; Circulating tumor DNA; Circulating tumor cells; Exosomes; Lung cancer.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Biomarkers, Tumor / analysis
Biopsy
DNA, Neoplasm / blood
Exosomes
Humans
Lung Neoplasms / pathology*
Neoplastic Cells, Circulating

Substances

Biomarkers, Tumor
DNA, Neoplasm