Biomarkers and Mutations
Educational orientation
Source-checked: 2026-06-05. This page explains concepts; it does not interpret genomic results.
Core Idea
A biomarker is a measurable feature that can help describe disease, risk, prognosis, or treatment relevance. A mutation is a DNA change; some mutations help drive cancer, some are passengers, and some have no clear meaning in a given context.
Modern oncology often uses biomarkers from tissue, blood, imaging, or molecular assays. The meaning depends on the cancer type, test method, evidence level, and clinical setting.
Essential Vocabulary
- Driver: alteration that contributes to cancer behavior.
- Passenger: alteration not known to drive disease.
- Predictive biomarker: associated with response to a therapy.
- Prognostic biomarker: associated with outcome regardless of therapy.
What This Does Not Mean
A mutation listed in a report is not automatically actionable. Evidence, indication, and assay validity matter.
Builder/Data Lens
Variant annotation needs genome build, transcript, allele fraction, test type, and knowledgebase version.
Go Deeper
References
- National Cancer Institute. Biomarker Testing for Cancer Treatment
- National Cancer Institute. The Genetics of Cancer