Biomarkers of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: impact on diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis

Rita Coutinho, John GribbenCentre for Haemato-Onocology, Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary, University of London, London, United KingdomAbstract: Introduction of immunochemotherapy as frontline treatment for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) has significantly increased survival. However, patients refractory to rituximab-containing regimens have a very poor survival. These differences in clinical behavior might lie behind the biological heterogeneity well recognized in this disease. Advanced molecular research has helped us to define DLBCL subgroups which harbor distinct oncogenic events and response to immunochemotherapy. The field of biomarker discovery in DLBCL has become more complex over the last decade and a broad up-to-date review on this topic is lacking. The aim for this review was to offer the hematology community a comprehensive overview of clinical and biological markers which have a diagnostic and prognostic potential and that might be amenable to therapeutic targeting. Some well known markers are reassessed in light of recent findings.Keywords: DLBCL, immunochemotherapy, rituximab, biomarkers