Is VEGF a predictive biomarker to anti-angiogenic therapy?

• Published in: Critical reviews in oncology/hematology Vol. 79; no. 2; pp. 103 - 111
• Main Authors: Otrock, Zaher K, Hatoum, Hassan A, Musallam, Khaled M, Awada, Ahmad H, Shamseddine, Ali I
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 01-08-2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: Angiogenesis; Angiogenesis Inhibitors - pharmacology; Angiogenesis Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Anti-angiogenic therapy; Antibodies, Monoclonal - pharmacology; Antibodies, Monoclonal - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Biomarker; Biomarkers - analysis; Hematologic and hematopoietic diseases; Hematology, Oncology and Palliative Medicine; Humans; Immunotherapy - methods; Medical sciences; Neoplasms - diagnosis; Neoplasms - drug therapy; Neoplasms - metabolism; Neovascularization, Pathologic - diagnosis; Neovascularization, Pathologic - drug therapy; Neovascularization, Pathologic - metabolism; Predictive Value of Tests; Protein Isoforms - analysis; Protein Isoforms - biosynthesis; Protein Kinase Inhibitors - pharmacology; Protein Kinase Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases - antagonists & inhibitors; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases - metabolism; Response; Review; Treatment Outcome; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors - analysis; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors - biosynthesis; VEGF; Response; Angiogenesis; Biomarker; Anti-angiogenic therapy; Review; VEGF; Biological marker; Cancerology; Vascular endothelium growth factor; Treatment; Neovascularization; Antiangiogenic agent; Bibliographic review
• ISSN: 1040-8428; 1879-0461
• DOI: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2010.07.008

Abstract Tumor growth and metastasis are dependent on angiogenesis. Inhibiting angiogenesis has therapeutic potentials for treating cancer. Researchers have identified many of the pathways involved in angiogenesis and proposed selective targeted strategies. A high probability of benefit is desirable to justify the choice of anti-angiogenic therapy from an ever-expanding list of expensive new anticancer agents. However, biomarkers of response to anti-angiogenic agents are inconclusive for predicting benefit from these drugs. This paper reviews the most important biomarker of angiogenesis, namely VEGF, in relation to its expression in cancer and the treatment of these cancers through targeting VEGF and its pathways.