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Molecular Pathology: A Requirement for Precision Medicine in Cancer

Manfred Dietel1

  • 1Institute of Pathology, Charité, University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany.

Oncology Research and Treatment
|November 28, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Surgical pathology faces new challenges with targeted cancer therapies and companion diagnostics. Molecular methods applied to tissue are crucial for precise diagnosis, guiding precision medicine and drug development.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Pathology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Targeted therapies and checkpoint inhibitors are increasingly vital in treating various cancers.
  • Companion diagnostics are essential for selecting appropriate treatments for specific tumor types.
  • Surgical pathology plays a critical role in providing tissue-based biomarker analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To highlight the evolving challenges in surgical pathology due to the rise of targeted cancer drugs and companion diagnostics.
  • To emphasize the necessity of precise and reliable tissue-based diagnostics for personalized medicine.
  • To discuss the adaptation of molecular methods within surgical pathology for comprehensive tissue analysis.

Main Methods:

  • Adaptation of molecular techniques for formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues.
  • Application of methods including immunohistochemistry, FISH, PCR, sequencing (Sanger, NGS), DNA arrays, and methylation analysis.
  • Integration of morphological, genetic, proteomic, and epigenetic analyses.

Main Results:

  • Surgical pathology has adopted diverse molecular methods to analyze tissue biomarkers.
  • These methods enable deep analysis of a patient's tissue for comprehensive diagnostic information.
  • Pathologists and molecular biologists provide essential data for precision medicine.

Conclusions:

  • Precise molecular diagnostics in surgical pathology are crucial for effective targeted therapy selection.
  • Enhanced cooperation between clinicians and pathologists is fundamental for advancing cancer treatment.
  • This integrated approach supports the development of novel cancer gene therapies and molecularly targeted drugs.

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