Diagnostic and Therapeutic Biomarkers in Glioblastoma: Current Status and Future Perspectives

Biomed Res Int. 2017:2017:8013575. doi: 10.1155/2017/8013575. Epub 2017 Feb 20.

Abstract

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a primary neuroepithelial tumor of the central nervous system, characterized by an extremely aggressive clinical phenotype. Patients with GBM have a poor prognosis and only 3-5% of them survive for more than 5 years. The current GBM treatment standards include maximal resection followed by radiotherapy with concomitant and adjuvant therapies. Despite these aggressive therapeutic regimens, the majority of patients suffer recurrence due to molecular heterogeneity of GBM. Consequently, a number of potential diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive biomarkers have been investigated. Some of them, such as IDH mutations, 1p19q deletion, MGMT promoter methylation, and EGFRvIII amplification are frequently tested in routine clinical practice. With the development of sequencing technology, detailed characterization of GBM molecular signatures has facilitated a more personalized therapeutic approach and contributed to the development of a new generation of anti-GBM therapies such as molecular inhibitors targeting growth factor receptors, vaccines, antibody-based drug conjugates, and more recently inhibitors blocking the immune checkpoints. In this article, we review the exciting progress towards elucidating the potential of current and novel GBM biomarkers and discuss their implications for clinical practice.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Biomarkers, Tumor / genetics*
  • Brain Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Brain Neoplasms / genetics
  • Brain Neoplasms / therapy*
  • DNA Methylation
  • DNA Modification Methylases / genetics
  • DNA Repair Enzymes / genetics
  • ErbB Receptors / genetics
  • Female
  • Gene Deletion
  • Glioblastoma / diagnosis*
  • Glioblastoma / genetics
  • Glioblastoma / therapy*
  • Humans
  • Immune System
  • Isocitrate Dehydrogenase / genetics
  • Male
  • Medical Oncology / methods
  • Medical Oncology / trends
  • Middle Aged
  • Mutation
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / drug therapy
  • Phenotype
  • Prognosis
  • Promoter Regions, Genetic
  • Signal Transduction
  • Tumor Suppressor Proteins / genetics

Substances

  • Biomarkers, Tumor
  • Tumor Suppressor Proteins
  • epidermal growth factor receptor VIII
  • IDH2 protein, human
  • Isocitrate Dehydrogenase
  • IDH1 protein, human
  • DNA Modification Methylases
  • MGMT protein, human
  • ErbB Receptors
  • DNA Repair Enzymes