Pros and cons of using aberrant glycosylation as companion biomarkers for therapeutics in cancer

Cancer treatment has been stratified by companion biomarker tests that serve to provide information on the genetic status of cancer patients and to identify patients who can be expected to respond to a given treatment. This stratification guarantees better efficiency and safety during treatment. Cancer patients, however, marginally benefit from the current companion biomarker-aided treatment regimens, presumably because companion biomarker tests are dependent solely on the mutation status of several genes status quo. In the true sense of the term, “personalized medicine”, cancer patients are deemed to be identified individually by their molecular signatures, which are not necessarily confined to genetic mutations. Glycosylation is tremendously dynamic and shows alterations in cancer. Evidence is accumulating that aberrant glycosylation contributes to the development and progression of cancer, holding the promise for use of glycosylation status as a companion biomarker in cancer treatment. There are, however, several challenges derived from the lack of a reliable detection system for aberrant glycosylation, and a limited library of aberrant glycosylation. The challenges should be addressed if glycosylation status is to be used as a companion biomarker in cancer treatment and contribute to the fulfillment of personalized medicine. [BMB reports 2011; 44(12): 765-771]