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Bai JW, Qiu SQ, Zhang GJ. Molecular and functional imaging in cancer-targeted therapy: current applications and future directions. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2023; 8:89. [PMID: 36849435 PMCID: PMC9971190 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-023-01366-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Targeted anticancer drugs block cancer cell growth by interfering with specific signaling pathways vital to carcinogenesis and tumor growth rather than harming all rapidly dividing cells as in cytotoxic chemotherapy. The Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumor (RECIST) system has been used to assess tumor response to therapy via changes in the size of target lesions as measured by calipers, conventional anatomically based imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and other imaging methods. However, RECIST is sometimes inaccurate in assessing the efficacy of targeted therapy drugs because of the poor correlation between tumor size and treatment-induced tumor necrosis or shrinkage. This approach might also result in delayed identification of response when the therapy does confer a reduction in tumor size. Innovative molecular imaging techniques have rapidly gained importance in the dawning era of targeted therapy as they can visualize, characterize, and quantify biological processes at the cellular, subcellular, or even molecular level rather than at the anatomical level. This review summarizes different targeted cell signaling pathways, various molecular imaging techniques, and developed probes. Moreover, the application of molecular imaging for evaluating treatment response and related clinical outcome is also systematically outlined. In the future, more attention should be paid to promoting the clinical translation of molecular imaging in evaluating the sensitivity to targeted therapy with biocompatible probes. In particular, multimodal imaging technologies incorporating advanced artificial intelligence should be developed to comprehensively and accurately assess cancer-targeted therapy, in addition to RECIST-based methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing-Wen Bai
- Fujian Key Laboratory of Precision Diagnosis and Treatment in Breast Cancer, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
- Xiamen Key Laboratory of Endocrine-Related Cancer Precision Medicine, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
- Xiamen Research Center of Clinical Medicine in Breast and Thyroid Cancers, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
- Department of Breast-Thyroid-Surgery and Cancer Center, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
- Department of Medical Oncology, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
- Cancer Research Center of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China
| | - Si-Qi Qiu
- Diagnosis and Treatment Center of Breast Diseases, Clinical Research Center, Shantou Central Hospital, 515041, Shantou, China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment, Shantou University Medical College, 515041, Shantou, China
| | - Guo-Jun Zhang
- Fujian Key Laboratory of Precision Diagnosis and Treatment in Breast Cancer, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China.
- Xiamen Key Laboratory of Endocrine-Related Cancer Precision Medicine, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China.
- Xiamen Research Center of Clinical Medicine in Breast and Thyroid Cancers, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China.
- Department of Breast-Thyroid-Surgery and Cancer Center, Xiang'an Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China.
- Cancer Research Center of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, 361100, Xiamen, China.
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