miRNAs as Biomarkers for Predicting the Progression of Ductal Carcinoma in Situ

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is defined as a proliferation of neoplastic cells within the duct of the mammary gland that have not invaded into the surrounding stroma. DCIS is considered a precursor to invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC); however, approximately half of DCIS may progress to IDC, if left untreated. Current research has shown that the genomic and transcriptomic changes are present in DCIS before the emergence of invasive disease, indicating that the malignant nature of the DCIS is defined before invasion. However, important questions remain surrounding the specific changes and processes required for malignant progression and identification of prognostic indicators of aggressiveness. miRNAs are small regulatory RNAs that can modulate gene expression by complementary binding to target mRNAs and inducing translational repression and/or mRNA degradation. In the past decade, research has shown that miRNA expression is dysregulated in IDC and that these changes are already present at the DCIS stage. Therefore, changes in miRNA expression may provide the necessary information to identify a clinical indicator of the aggressiveness of DCIS. Herein, we review the miRNA signatures identified in DCIS, describe how these signatures may be used to predict the aggressiveness of DCIS, and discuss future perspectives for DCIS biomarker discovery.