Gastric Juice Biomarkers in Gastric Cancer: New Trends?

Abstract

As gastric cancer represents the fifth most common cancer diagnosis and the third leading cause of cancer death worldwide, it remains a current social and health issue. A variety of genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors contribute to the development of gastric cancer, although the etiology remains unclear. Timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment play the most crucial role not only in the containment of morbidity and mortality but also in the prognosis. The establishment of novel non-invasive biomarkers into patient management protocols represents a very promising and challenging approach. In this article, we focus on gastric cancer biomarkers with a special interest in gastric juice that may represent a novel, non-invasive, cost-effective 'liquid biopsy'.