Advances in meningioma genomics, proteomics, and epigenetics: Insights into biomarker identification and targeted therapies

Abstract

Meningiomas are a heterogeneous group of tumors, defined histo-pathologically by World Health Organization (WHO) grading. The WHO grade of meningiomas does not always correlate with clinical aggressiveness. Despite maximal surgical resection and adjuvant radiation, a subset of tumors are clinically aggressive; displaying early recurrence and invasion. Current methods for identifying aggressive meningiomas solely focus on genomics, proteomics, or epigenetics and not a combination of all for developing a real-time clinical biomarker. Improved methods for the identification of these outlying tumors can facilitate better classification and potentially adjuvant treatment planning. Understanding the pathways of oncogenesis using multiple markers driving aggressive meningiomas can provide a foundation for targeted therapies, which currently do not exist.