Biomarkers for angiogenesis and antiangiogenic drugs in clinical oncology.

AIMS

The clinical use of anti-angiogenic drugs, alone or in combination with other drugs, is increasing in medical oncology. However, identifying the best suited drug and the optimal dosage and schedule for treatment of patients remain challenging.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We reviewed data about surrogate biomarkers of angiogenesis and anti-angiogenic drug activity currently available in the literature. Circulating endothelial cells (CECs) and circulating endothelial progenitors (CEPs) have been found to have some predictive potential in some clinical trials involving advanced breast cancer patients. Molecular surrogate markers, on the other hand, are more scanty at the present time, because the identification of truly endothelial-cell-restricted genes and/or antigens has been so far more elusive.

CONCLUSION

The search and validation of new biomarkers for angiogenesis and anti-angiogenic drug activity have many biological, technical and clinical facets which render this task particularly complex. An accurate planning of biomarker search and validation throughout future clinical studies is highly warranted.