Key Points
• Source: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Conclusions/Relevance: “In the present paper, we summarized and referred to a number of original pieces of research concerning the clinical significance of specific proteins as potential biomarkers for GC [gastric cancer] in comparison to well-established tumor markers for this malignancy …. Based on the recent scientific literature, our review indicates that presented specific proteins are potential biomarkers in the diagnosis and progression of GC as well as might be used as prognostic factors of GC patients’ survival.”
• The following play a role in GC pathology: selected chemokines and their specific receptors, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), specific proteins such as interleukin 6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their tissue inhibitors (TIMPs), a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs (ADAMTS), as well as DNA- and RNA-based biomarkers, and c-MET (tyrosine-protein kinase Met).
• “Selected chemokines and their receptors, VEGF and EGFR, DNA- and RNA-based biomarkers, and MET, IL-6 and CRP, as well as MMPs and their tissue inhibitors, are promising biomarkers in the diagnosis and progression of GC, while selected ADAMs and TIMPs might be used as potential prognostic factors of a GC patient survival,” the authors wrote.
• There is an unmet need for novel biomarkers to diagnose and treat cancer, as well as guide medication choice and the prediction of drug response. Such biomarkers could also be used to follow cancer survivors.