Liquid biopsy biomarkers to guide immunotherapy in breast cancer

Front Immunol. 2023 Nov 23:14:1303491. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1303491. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) therapy has emerged as a promising treatment strategy for breast cancer (BC). However, current reliance on immunohistochemical (IHC) detection of PD-L1 expression alone has limited predictive capability, resulting in suboptimal efficacy of ICIs for some BC patients. Hence, developing novel predictive biomarkers is indispensable to enhance patient selection for immunotherapy. In this context, utilizing liquid biopsy (LB) can provide supplementary or alternative value to PD-L1 IHC testing for identifying patients most likely to benefit from immunotherapy and exhibit favorable responses. This review discusses the predictive and prognostic value of LB in breast cancer immunotherapy, as well as its limitations and future directions. We aim to promote the individualization and precision of immunotherapy in BC by elucidating the role of LB in clinical practice.

Keywords: biomarkers; breast cancer; immune checkpoint inhibitors; immunotherapy; liquid biopsy.

Publication types

  • Review
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • B7-H1 Antigen / metabolism
  • Biomarkers, Tumor / metabolism
  • Breast Neoplasms* / diagnosis
  • Breast Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Breast Neoplasms* / therapy
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Immunotherapy / methods
  • Liquid Biopsy

Substances

  • B7-H1 Antigen
  • Biomarkers, Tumor

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by Radiation Oncology Translational Medicine Foundation for Scientific Research of Bethune (grant number flzh202123), Shandong Medical Association Clinical Research Fund–Qilu Special Project (grant number YXH2022ZX02196) and Jinan Science and Technology Clinical Medicine Innovation Plan (grant number 20225011 and 20238073). The funding sources had no role in the study design, data collection, analysis of interpretation, or writing of this manuscript.