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Promise without practice — charting the path forward for bladder cancer biomarkers

Nature Reviews Urology (2025)Cite this article

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Bladder cancer is a biologically heterogeneous disease, and ongoing efforts in biomarker research aim to support personalized treatment approaches. Circulating tumour DNA is approaching clinical integration through prospective trials, whereas other markers remain investigational owing to technical limitations, inconsistent findings and lack of validation. Rigorous biomarker-driven trials and cost-effectiveness studies are needed to enable the integration of molecular tools into routine practice. Biomarkers might ultimately lead to rational treatment de-escalation or escalation, improving outcomes while minimizing harm and cost.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Marie-Pier St-Laurent & Peter C. Black

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  1. Marie-Pier St-Laurent
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  2. Peter C. Black
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Correspondence to Marie-Pier St-Laurent.

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M.-P.S.-L. has received honorarium or consultant fees from Abbvie, Bayer, EMD Sereno, Johnson & Johnson and TerSera. P.C.B. has received consulting fees or honorarium from AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Astellas, Aura, Bayer, BMS, CG Oncology, Combat, EMD-Serono, Ferring, Janssen, Merck, Nonagen, Nanobot, NanOlogy, Pfizer, Photocure, Prokarium, Sumitomo, TerSera, Tolmar and Verity and shares a patent with Veracyte.

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St-Laurent, MP., Black, P.C. Promise without practice — charting the path forward for bladder cancer biomarkers. Nat Rev Urol (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-025-01064-0

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