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Predictive and prognostic markers for invasive breast cancer
Author(s) -
Mori Ichiro,
Yang Qifeng,
Kakudo Kennichi
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
pathology international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.73
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1827
pISSN - 1320-5463
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1827.2002.01335.x
Subject(s) - medicine , breast cancer , oncology , cancer , metastasis , adjuvant therapy , stage (stratigraphy) , predictive marker , histopathology , pathology , biology , paleontology
Breast cancer is one of the most serious carcinomas among women worldwide, yet there are now encouraging signs that improvements in the mortality rate may be possible. The use of hormone therapy and chemotherapy has been widely accepted as treatment for breast cancer. Predictive factors can be used to predict response or lack of response to a particular therapy, and prognostic factors can be useful in making decisions about which patients should receive adjuvant therapy. Histopathology remains the universal basis of diagnosis, with the identification of new surrogate markers for potential new treatments. These are aimed at blocking tumor cell proliferation, neutralizing growth factors, stimulating apoptosis and blocking metastasis, and represent an integral part of new approaches for improving clinical management of patients with breast cancer. We review the standard predictive and prognostic factors that are routinely available today, and also describe some of the new, potential markers that are currently under investigation.