Medical imaging-based companion diagnostics for solid tumors

Abstract

Heterogeneity within the solid tumor microenvironment contributes to a poor prognosis and limited therapeutic responses. Companion diagnostics (CDx), a clinical technique that gives doctors vital biomarker information to enhance patient outcomes through matching specific treatments to patients, is becoming more and more important. However, most current US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved CDx tests have difficulty dynamically reflecting variations in biomarkers in the solid tumor microenvironment because they are used in vitro and ex vivo. Consequently, new medical imaging-based CDx tests have been widely used to detect interpatient and intrapatient tumor heterogeneity to assess the intratumoral distribution of specific biomarkers and microenvironment variables. They provide patient stratification for targeted therapies and the differentiation of patient populations that benefit from alternative treatments. This review provides an overview of the recent advances in medical imaging-based CDx for solid tumors and summarizes the various tumor microenvironment biomarkers utilized in imaging-based CDx. We believe that this review offers additional details and directions for promoting medical imaging-based CDx development.

Keywords

• Imaging
• Biomarkers
• Companion diagnostics
• Solid tumors