Radiogenomics: bridging the gap between imaging and genomics for precision oncology

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Genomics
• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Precision Medicine

Background:

• Genomics provides molecular insights into cancer but faces challenges like invasiveness and tumor heterogeneity in clinical decision-making.
• Medical imaging offers noninvasive tumor characterization, but traditional visual evaluation has limitations.
• Radiomics extracts quantitative features from radiological images, overcoming visual assessment limitations and utilizing rich image data.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a comprehensive overview of the current framework and clinical applications of radiogenomics.
• To highlight research advances demonstrating radiogenomics' potential in addressing clinical problems in solid tumors.
• To identify challenges and propose solutions for advancing radiogenomics in precision oncology.

Main Methods:

• Integration of radiomics (quantitative analysis of medical images) with genomics (study of cancer's molecular basis).
• Review of current literature and research advances in radiogenomics.
• Analysis of clinical applications in solid tumors like breast cancer, lung cancer, and glioma.

Main Results:

• Radiogenomics offers a powerful approach to enhance cancer decoding by bridging molecular and imaging data.
• Demonstrated potential of radiogenomics in addressing clinical challenges in common solid tumors.
• Identified key research pathways and solutions for existing challenges in the field.

Conclusions:

• The cross-scale integration of radiomics and genomics (radiogenomics) is a catalyst for digital precision medicine.
• Radiogenomics has enormous potential to improve cancer diagnosis, treatment, and patient care.
• This survey provides valuable guidance for researchers aiming to advance precision oncology through radiogenomics.