Autoantibodies for cancer detection: still cause for excitement?

The identification of circulating biomarkers of early stage malignancy is a critical component of ongoing efforts aimed at reducing the overall public and personal impact of human cancer through early detection. The human immune system is capable of identifying and reporting the presence of tumor-derived factors appearing during the initial events of tumorigenesis with a sensitivity and specificity far beyond currently developed biochemical assays. Tapping into the process of immune surveillance through the identification and evaluation of autoantibodies against tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) represents a promising avenue of biomarker development. Here we review a diverse series of reports describing the use of TAA-specific autoantibodies for the discrimination of cancer from control groups. A description of the major technical platforms being utilized as well as specific innovations implemented for the detection of autoantibody biomarkers is included. This review provides an objective survey of results obtained using individual TAA-specific autoantibodies as well as multi-autoantibody panels in order to identify and assess emerging trends in this field of research. Such trends provide a basis for the discernment of the specific challenges currently facing autoantibody biomarker development, and lay the groundwork for future innovations aimed at overcoming those challenges.