Predictive Biomarkers in the Management of Bladder Cancer: Perspectives in an Evolving Therapeutic Landscape

Abstract

Bladder cancer (BC) is a heterogeneous disease with prognosis and therapeutic strategies highly dependent on tumor grade and stage. Predictive biomarkers of therapeutic response have been studied to guide selection of intravesical and/or systemic therapy. A predictive biomarker is measured before the start of treatment and provides information on the likelihood of response to a specific therapy. Many candidate predictive biomarkers for BC have been identified, but few have been rigorously validated or distinguished from simply having treatment-agnostic prognostic capacity. Identifying predictive biomarkers tailored to therapeutic mechanism of action has considerable implications for the sequencing of therapies, as well as bladder preservation strategies in advanced disease states. We evaluate predictive tissue-based, urine-based, and serum-based biomarkers across the spectrum of non–muscle-invasive and muscle-invasive BC and preview predictive biomarkers for emerging targeted therapies.