Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
standard cancer treatments and that developmental pathways that regulate cell fate
determination, such as hedgehog or Notch, are involved in their maintenance [41-44].
If this were confirmed in cancer patient samples, then drugs that target these pathways
might potently enhance the effectiveness of standard cancer treatments. This question
is therefore of great interest to cancer stem cell researchers, and there is potential for
flow cytometry to make a major contribution to the field because of its ability to study
complex processes in rare subpopulations of cells.
7.4 FUTURE PROSPECTS
The development of molecular medicine and the introduction of personalized
treatments have gathered momentum over the last few years, and this trend is
expected to continue. It is increasingly recognized that new therapeutic agents need
to be developed in parallel with laboratory methods able to identify patients likely to
benefit (theranostics) and also to monitor the effects during treatment. Eventually
some of these tests are expected to move from the preclinical and early-phase clinical
trial setting into routine patient care. A common theme running through the flow
cytometry methods discussed in this chapter is their potential for development from a
research study to standardized clinical tests. Clinical flow cytometry is a mature
discipline within laboratory medicine that undergoes a process of continuing profes-
sional, technical, and scientific development. It is expected that over the next few
years, we will see increasing numbers of flow applications for studying novel drugs
moving from research methods to large-scale clinical trials and eventually into use for
routine patient care.
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