IPPON established an important core to study multiple biological factors as possible biomarkers for cancer therapy. Our biomarker research includes - but is not limited to - the study of
- Prognostic biomarkers in colorectal cancer
- Predictive biomarkers for the use of anti-EGFR therapeutics in HNSCC
- Cytoglobin (CYGB) expression as a prognostic factor
- Immune molecules as prognostic and predictive biomarkers in solid tumors
- PET tracers as predictive biomarkers of response to immune checkpoint blockade
In order to provide cancer patients with personalized treatment, molecular understanding of the tumor is indispensable. IPPON focuses on 2 highly innovative topics:
- Build signatures for precision medicine by using (epi)genome, transcriptome, proteome and kinome data and by establishing a phosphopeptide fingerprint of kinome perturbations associated with drug resistance and/or sensitisation in in vitro/in vivo samples as well as ex vivo patient samples. The phosphopeptide fingerprint will be applied as a diagnostic and/or predictive tool for personalized patient centred therapeutic applications in treatment of poor prognosis, glucocorticoid-resistant haematological malignancies.
- Tumor biopsies are needed to provide molecular information. Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and RNA (ctRNA) in liquid biopsies are not only of interest during the initial work-up of a cancer patient, but also because this approach allows monitoring of the disease during treatment, including the detection of acquired resistance, which can enable fast switch to an alternative therapy. Therefore we will evaluate the use of blood plasma, saliva, platelets and urine as liquid biopsy in the setting of real-time disease monitoring in a patient-friendly way in different tumor types.