[Molecular targeted therapy for cancer].

Recent insights into the molecular mechanism of cancer progression have given rise to specific target-directed therapies, including monoclonal antibodies and small molecular compounds, and the advent of target-specific therapeutics has remarkably improved the outcomes of patients with various malignancies. Recent advance also lead to the identification of prognostic biomarkers as predictive factors in determining response to molecular targeted drugs. Future studies also need to develop biomarkers to further increase the power of patient selection for molecular targeted therapy. Here we review the recent progress in developing new molecular targeted drugs and the resistance to treatments as well as the importance of measuring the QOL by patient-reported outcome, for personalized therapy.