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Prognostic gene expression profiling in melanoma: necessary steps to incorporate into clinical practice

Written by Grossman D, Kim C, Hartman R et al.

uveal melanoma

The latest perspective article published by Melanoma Management discusses how prognostic gene expression profiling (GEP) could be incorporated into clinical practice for management of cutaneous melanoma (CM). The authors of the study aim to provide insight into the potential benefits, challenges and barriers to introducing this prognostic biomarker into a normal clinical setting for CM, and highlight the need for high-quality research to determine best practise use for optimal patient care.

Abstract

Prognostic gene expression profiling (GEP) tests for cutaneous melanoma (CM) are not recommended in current guidelines outside of a clinical trial. However, their use is becoming more prevalent and some practitioners are using GEP tests to guide patient management. Thus, there is an urgent need to bridge this gap between test usage and clinical guideline recommendations by obtaining high-quality evidence to guide us toward best practice use of GEP testing in CM patients. We focus here on the opportunities and uncertainties associated with prognostic GEP testing in CM, review how GEP testing was incorporated into clinical care guidelines for uveal melanoma and breast cancer and discuss the role of clinical trials to determine best use in patients with CM.

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