Biomarker Commons

Recently, the Journal of the American Heart Association published conclusive results from a study directed by Dr. Éric Thorin of the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI), which suggests for the first time that a blood protein contributes to the early development of atherosclerosis.

As we've done in previous years here at Biomarker Commons (AACR 2011 and AACR 2012), here's a roundup of eight research studies on cancer biomarkers that were presented last month at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in Washington, DC.

Patients with coronary artery disease who undergo treatment at the University of Maryland Medical Center now can receive long-term therapy based on information found in their genes. As part of a new personalized medicine initiative, the medical center is offering genetic testing to help doctors determine which medication a patient should take after a stenting procedure in order to prevent blood clots that could lead to serious – and potentially fatal – heart attacks and strokes.

When Colin Hill’s father was diagnosed with later-stage prostate cancer last summer, he was treated the same as every other patient with the illness.

This standardized approach bothered Hill, who believes medicine should approach each patient’s illness as unique, with medication tailored to the person’s history and biology.

“You show up to the hospital, and it’s like Groundhog Day,” Hill said, with patients being cared for the same way, over and over again. “It’s this outdated standard of care created for this hypothetical average patient. But no one’s an average patient.”

Two independent validation studies demonstrate that Pronota’s biomarker CD146 significantly improves the diagnosis of acute heart failure for patients with shortness of breath. The biomarker, measured in blood, provides clinicians with unique additional information allowing better treatment of this challenging group of patients.

Current diagnosis for acute heart failure is limited

"Current wisdom says that cells are closed entities that communicate through the secretion of soluble signalling molecules. Recent findings indicate that cells can exchange more complex information – whole packages of genetic material and signalling proteins. This is an entirely new conception of how cells communicate", says Dr Mattias Belting, Professor of Oncology at Lund University and senior consultant in oncology at Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden.