Circulating miRNAs as a marker of metastatic disease and prognostic factor in metastatic breast cancer.

Background: Circulating miRNAs (miRs) are increasingly recognized as potential biomarkers in cancer. We aimed to evaluate the differential expression of miR-23b and miR-190 which are involved in tumor dormancy, miR-21 involved in metastasis and miR-200b and miR-200c involved in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis, in the plasma of patients with early and metastatic breast cancer (MBC). We also aimed to identify associations of the expression levels with patient and disease characteristics and outcomes in metastatic patients treated with first-line chemotherapy.

Circulating microRNAs in the early prediction of disease recurrence in primary breast cancer.

Background: In primary breast cancer metastases frequently arise from a state of dormancy that may persist for extended periods of time. We investigated the efficacy of plasma micro-RNA (miR)-21, miR-23b, miR-190, miR-200b and miR-200c, related to dormancy and metastasis, to predict the outcome of patients with early breast cancer.

Methods: miRNAs were evaluated by RT-qPCR in plasma obtained before adjuvant chemotherapy.

Targeting angiogenesis in small cell lung cancer.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a highly aggressive and lethal malignancy. Despite high initial response rates to systemic chemotherapy, the disease eventually relapses; further treatment only modestly improves outcomes and overall survival (OS) for patients with extensive stage disease is less than one year. Little progress has been made during the past decades, with no new drugs approved.