Circulating microRNAs in breast cancer: novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers

Rimi Hamam, Dana Hamam, Khalid A. Alsaleh, Moustapha Kassem, Waleed Zaher, Musaad Alfayez, Abdullah Aldahmash, Nehad M. Alajez*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

297 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Effective management of breast cancer depends on early diagnosis and proper monitoring of patients’ response to therapy. However, these goals are difficult to achieve because of the lack of sensitive and specific biomarkers for early detection and for disease monitoring. Accumulating evidence in the past several years has highlighted the potential use of peripheral blood circulating nucleic acids such as DNA, mRNA and micro (mi)RNA in breast cancer diagnosis, prognosis and for monitoring response to anticancer therapy. Among these, circulating miRNA is increasingly recognized as a promising biomarker, given the ease with which miRNAs can be isolated and their structural stability under different conditions of sample processing and isolation. In this review, we provide current state-of-the-art of miRNA biogenesis, function and discuss the advantages, limitations, as well as pitfalls of using circulating miRNAs as diagnostic, prognostic or predictive biomarkers in breast cancer management.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere3045
JournalCell Death and Disease
Volume8
Issue number9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2017
Externally publishedYes

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