Definitions of biomarkers and potential applications
| Types of biomarkers . | Definition . | Applications . |
|---|---|---|
| Diagnostic | An assay that identifies patients at the onset of clinical disease | To help in rapid diagnosis and initiation of therapy |
| To distinguish patients with the disease from those without the disease but similar symptoms (ie, GI GVHD vs infectious colitis or bronchiolitis obliterans vs infectious pulmonary) | ||
| Prognostic | An assay that categorizes patients by degree of risk for disease occurrence | To help design a biomarker-based preemptive trial |
| To determine whether an intervention based on high- or low-risk biomarkers before the clinical signs reduce the anticipated incidence of the disease | ||
| Predictive | An assay that categorizes patients by their likelihood of response to or outcome of a particular treatment when measured prior to the treatment | To intensify treatment in high-risk patients |
| To decrease treatment in low-risk patients | ||
| Response to treatment | An assay performed after initiation of therapy | To monitor the response to treatment |
| Types of biomarkers . | Definition . | Applications . |
|---|---|---|
| Diagnostic | An assay that identifies patients at the onset of clinical disease | To help in rapid diagnosis and initiation of therapy |
| To distinguish patients with the disease from those without the disease but similar symptoms (ie, GI GVHD vs infectious colitis or bronchiolitis obliterans vs infectious pulmonary) | ||
| Prognostic | An assay that categorizes patients by degree of risk for disease occurrence | To help design a biomarker-based preemptive trial |
| To determine whether an intervention based on high- or low-risk biomarkers before the clinical signs reduce the anticipated incidence of the disease | ||
| Predictive | An assay that categorizes patients by their likelihood of response to or outcome of a particular treatment when measured prior to the treatment | To intensify treatment in high-risk patients |
| To decrease treatment in low-risk patients | ||
| Response to treatment | An assay performed after initiation of therapy | To monitor the response to treatment |