The assessment of breast cancer biomarkers in diagnosis, prognosis and treatment monitoring: integrated analysis.

Abstract

Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease, which is still a challenge for modern cancer diagnostics. Despite significant progress in diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of breast cancer, it remains the leading cause of cancer-related death in women. Effective screening methods, which enable early diagnosis of the disease and rapid personalised treatment are crucial to improving survival of women with breast cancer. In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to the clinical utility of circulating biomarkers, such as proteins, autoantibodies, miRNAs, circRNAs, ctDNA or CTCs, which have the potential to supplement traditional methods of BC diagnosis. Despite much research, no sufficiently sensitive and minimally invasive marker has been identified to aid in the early diagnosis, monitoring of disease progression and response to therapy in women with breast cancer. Combinatorial analysis of circulating biomarkers is novel and promising approach, which may overcome the limitations of single biomarker assays.