Diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive cancer biomarkers in cancer theraputic approaches

Biomarkers are molecules, for example, DNA, RNA, proteins, as well as metabolites, present in biofluids or tissues, whose levels are altered in response to disease. They are very important for healthcare settings as they provide significant insights to identify various biological processes, including progression and treatment response. In cancer therapy, these biomarkers assist in early identification, monitoring disease development as well as progression, and guiding personalized medicine. Cancer biomarkers are clinically categorised into three types: Diagnostic, Prognostic, and Predictive. Diagnostic biomarkers provide information about the disease and whether the patient has a particular kind of cancer. They also give information about the subtypes of that disease. Prognostic biomarkers assist for the prediction of the effects of the cancer in a patient, without considering the type of treatment. In addition, it also shows how aggressive the cancer is and how fast it may progress. Predictive biomarkers, in contrast, predict the patient's response to a particular treatment and which treatment strategy will be the most beneficial for the patient, which minimizes the time and expenditure of the treatment, and also avoids any adverse effects of the treatment. Recent advancements in highly efficient techniques such as genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and advanced imaging have improved the detection of cancer biomarkers, which are more sensitive, specific, and accurate. These advances have led to the rise of targeted therapies, immunotherapy, and personalized medicine. Despite all these breakthroughs, challenges remain in the biomarker standardization, clinical validation, and accessibility of biomarker-based approaches. This chapter highlights the different types of biomarkers available for cancer detection and diagnosis, clinical applications, recent perspectives, and future prospects in cancer therapeutics.