When you go to see a doctor, they ask you to do things like a blood report, a urine report, right? Or they check your blood pressure (BP), your pulse (heart rate). Actually, through all these things, the doctor is trying to get a clear idea of the condition inside your body. Today we are going to talk about these ' biomarkers ' that are present in our body and that give us very valuable information about our health .
What exactly are biomarkers?
Simply put, a biomarker is any measurable characteristic of your body. They can be found in your blood, other body fluids (such as urine), or tissues. Doctors sometimes call them ``Molecular markers'' or ``Signature molecules''.
Think of it like the signals on your car's dashboard. Just like the 'check engine' light comes on when there's a problem with the engine, these biomarkers give us a clue, a sign, about some disease condition, an abnormal process, or a normal process in our body. Also, if you are undergoing treatment for a disease, doctors use these biomarkers to find out how your body is responding to that treatment.
What are the main types of biomarkers?
Biomarkers can be divided into several types. Each type tells a different story about your body. Let's take a look at what these main types are.
| Biomarker Type | What does that say? |
|---|---|
| Diagnostic | These help to identify exactly whether you have a specific disease. This allows the doctor to make a more accurate diagnosis. |
| Monitoring | These are used to monitor your condition over time (weeks, months, or years) and see if it gets better, gets worse, or stays the same . |
| Predictive | These help the doctor predict how your body will respond to a particular treatment. |
| Susceptibility/Risk | These are used to determine your risk of developing a disease. This can be done before the disease even enters your body. |
| Prognostic | After a diagnosis, these can give you a good picture of what your condition will look like in the future . |
What are the Biomarkers we are familiar with?
Biomarkers may sound like an unfamiliar word to you, but you already know many of them.
These are very simple, everyday biomarkers:
- Your blood pressure: This says a lot about the health of your heart and blood vessels.
- X-ray tests: This is a biomarker to look for things like a broken bone or a lung infection.
- CAT scan results: Provides detailed images of the organs inside the body.
- Pulse: A simple biomarker of heart rate.
But in addition to simple things like this, there are also more complex types of biomarkers that are tested in laboratories.
- Lab tests on blood and tissues: For example, a blood test called HbA1c for someone with diabetes can tell exactly how well their blood sugar levels have been controlled over the past 3 months.
- Molecules from tumors: Some types of cancer release specific proteins into the blood. These can be measured to help diagnose cancer.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have all heard about the `(PCR)` test, right? It is also a great example of a biomarker test. It looks for genetic fragments of the virus in our body. It is used to detect not only COVID-19, but many other things.
Why are biomarkers important to us?
Biomarkers are not just numbers on a report. They provide doctors with a wealth of valuable information about our health . They help measure the extent to which a system in the body is functioning normally or abnormally.
Especially in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer
When it comes to cancer, biomarkers are a very important tool. These can be proteins, genes, or other substances.
- Helps detect cancer early: Some types of cancer can be detected with biomarker testing before symptoms appear. Detecting cancer early means that the chances of treatment being successful are much higher.
- The severity of the cancer can be predicted: Biomarkers help the doctor understand how far the cancer has spread throughout the body and what stage it is in.
- Guides you to choose the right treatment: This is the most important thing. Some biomarkers can tell you whether your body will respond to a certain anti-cancer drug (chemotherapy) or not. Then you can choose the treatment that suits you best , avoiding drugs that are useless and only cause side effects.
- Measuring the risk of cancer recurrence: Sometimes, after a cancerous tumor is surgically removed, the cells in the tumor are examined and a `recurrence risk score` is given to estimate the risk of the cancer coming back. This can be very helpful in making decisions about future treatment.
These biomarker tests for cancer are called by different names. If your report contains these words, it means it is a biomarker test.
- Genomic testing
- Molecular testing
- Tumor marker testing
- Next-generation sequencing (NGS)
- Somatic testing
Biomarkers and the future of medicine
The importance of biomarkers is not limited to cancer. Researchers use biomarkers to measure how new drugs affect people when developing new drugs.
Similarly, there is great hope for biomarkers in the field of mental health (psychiatry). Research is currently underway to see if biomarkers can be used to identify mental illnesses (e.g., depression) and to determine how patients respond to medications. If this is successful, it will be possible in the future to provide psychological treatment that is tailored to each individual , rather than a "one-size-fits-all" approach.
Take-Home Message
- Biomarkers are important indicators of your health that can be measured in things like your blood, urine, and tissues.
- Biomarkers include simple things like blood pressure and X-rays, as well as complex things like genetic tests.
- These are very important for early detection of a disease, especially cancer, monitoring its progress, and choosing the treatment that best suits you.
- If your doctor recommends a biomarker test, don't be afraid to ask why. Always discuss the results with your doctor.
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