Short Communication - Journal of Cancer Immunology & Therapy (2021) Volume 4, Issue 2
The new opportunities from the clinical multi-gene panel sequesing for the molecular stratification of the metastatic in the collateral cancer
Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers worldwide. The metastatic
disease contributes to the high mortality rate reported for such tumors. Significant benefit on overall survival
was brought about the introduction of monoclonal antibodies anti-EGFR and antiVEGF used in combination
with chemotherapy in metastatic CRC (mCRC). While anti-VEGF treatment does not require biomarkerbased
selection criteria, the potential efficacy of anti-EGFR antibodies is neglected to patients with activating
mutations in KRAS and NRAS (RAS) genes, that became a clinical routine. Recently, different molecular
classification of CRC patients mostly based on omics approaches has been proposed. Although these might
have implications for prognostic or therapy decisions, their immediate transfer to routine diagnostic/
clinical settings is seriously challenging in terms of methodology, turnaround time, costs and mindset. As
a consequence, to date, only few molecular biomarkers, such as RAS or BRAF, are routinely used in the
standard clinical management of mCRC patients, but in the era of personalized therapy, we should be able
to reach beyond the concept “one gene-one drug”. With the aim of responding to the clinical demand of RAS
testing, many new rapid, sensitive and economic approaches have been implemented over the years, among
them the NGS platforms
Author(s): Bgelardinilli