Breast cancer: contribution of molecular biology to the management of the disease

The possible applications of molecular biology to cancer research obviously surpass the confines of exclusively scientific knowledge, making available solid tools for the management of the disease. Breast cancer patients can be considered one of the populations that has most benefited from current research, both clinical and basic, probably as a consequence of the clinical epidemiological relevance of this malignancy. The applications of the knowledge contributed by molecular biology to the study of breast cancer can be grouped according to their mechanisms and the aspect of the disease for which they have been designed: as information complementary to pathologic diagnosis, as prognostic markers of the disease, as possible predictors of treatment response, as a rational basis for developing new treatment strategies, and as the molecular basis for establishing groups of hereditary cancers.