Priya Hays

Title : Recent clinical studies and data identifying prognostic and predictive biomarkers in solid tumors

Abstract:

Biomarker driven trials have become central to the progress of precision oncology and cancer genomic medicine. Prognostic and predictable biomarkers in solid tumors have been identified through recent clinical trials and data. Liquid biopsy analysis in one study found detectable ctDNA correlated with high rates of recurrence patients with esophagogastric cancers (67%) when compared with undetectable ctDNA (15%). Significantly shorter recurrence free survivals were also associated with detectable ctDNA. (Lander 2024.) TMB-high (TMB-H; ≥10 mutations per megabase [muts/Mb], n = 352, 71%) was also shown to be predictive of improved real-world progression-free survival and overall survival versus TMB-low in both mono immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy  and dual immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy  for metastatic melanoma. Dual therapy conferred no overall benefit and demonstrated the greatest benefit high TMB groups. (Andrews 2024).  A biomarker based profile based on gene expression was developed and validated for clear cell renal cell carcinoma with  a 15 gene signature. It was found that the gene expression based biomarker was associated with recurrent disease and worse disease free survival (Mehra 2024). This presentation will discuss the most recent studies indicating biomarkers with prognostic and predictive significance for solid tumors, and also explain its relevance and implications for developing targeted therapies.

Biography:

Priya Hays, M.S., Ph.D. is an accomplished science writer, having written and published five books as well as having authored over twenty publications in journals as varied as the Bulletin of Science, Technology and Society, L’Esprit Createur, Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, Genetics in Medicine, and European Journal of Medical Research. She served as Guest Editor for a volume on cancer immunotherapies in the Cancer Treatment and Research series and wrote the second edition of her book on personalized medicine Advancing Healthcare Through Personalized Medicine. Her latest  book is a compilation of papers entitled “A Dialectical Mind: Essays in Literary Studies, Science and Medicine” published by Eliva Press. She completed her postdoctoral research fellowship in the Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, at Dartmouth Medical School. She has an A.B. with Honors from Dartmouth College in Biochemistry and Comparative Literature, an M.S. in Genetics from the University of California, Davis, and a Ph.D. in Literature from the University of California, San Diego.