Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Evaluation of Biomarkers in Glioma by Immunohistochemistry on Paraffin-Embedded 3D Glioma Neurosphere Cultures
Published on: January 9, 2019
Circulating glioma biomarkers
Johan M Kros1, Dana M Mustafa1, Lennard J M Dekker1
1Department of Pathology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (J.M.K., D.M.M., P.-P.Z.); Department of Neurology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (L.J.M.D., P.A.E.S.S., T.M.L.); Brain Tumor Center Rotterdam, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (J.M.K., D.M.M., L.J.M.D., P.A.E.S.S., T.M.L., P.-P.Z.).
Abstract:
Validated biomarkers for patients suffering from gliomas are urgently needed for standardizing measurements of the effects of treatment in daily clinical practice and trials. Circulating body fluids offer easily accessible sources for such markers. This review highlights various categories of tumor-associated circulating biomarkers identified in blood and cerebrospinal fluid of glioma patients, including circulating tumor cells, exosomes, nucleic acids, proteins, and oncometabolites. The validation and potential clinical utility of these biomarkers is briefly discussed. Although many candidate circulating protein biomarkers were reported, none of these have reached the required validation to be introduced for clinical practice. Recent developments in tracing circulating tumor cells and their derivatives as exosomes and circulating nuclear acids may become more successful in providing useful biomarkers. It is to be expected that current technical developments will contribute to the finding and validation of circulating biomarkers.

