Lipids play critical functions in cellular survival, proliferation, interaction and death, since they are involved in chemical-energy storage, cellular signaling, cell membranes, and cell-cell interactions. These cellular processes are strongly related to carcinogenesis pathways, particularly to transformation, progression, and metastasis, suggesting the bioactive lipids are mediators of a number of oncogenic processes. The current review gives a synopsis of a lipidomic approach in tumor characterization; we provide an overview on potential lipid biomarkers in the oncology field and on the principal lipidomic methodologies applied. The novel lipidomic biomarkers are reviewed in an effort to underline their role in diagnosis, in prognostic characterization and in prediction of therapeutic outcomes. A lipidomic investigation through mass spectrometry highlights new insights on molecular mechanisms underlying cancer disease. This new understanding will promote clinical applications in drug discovery and personalized therapy.
Keywords: biomarkers; cancer; diagnostic factors; lipidomics; prognostic factors.