3D histological biomarkers for precision medicine

Histological biomarkers are usually evaluated in 2D, an approach prone to sampling bias. Indeed, the abundance biomarkers such as PD-L1 or PD-1 show large variations between different slices extracted from the same sample. Therefore, it is not surprising that these methods have a lower accuracy compared to those based on the observation of genetic mutations.

We propose the adoption of a new 3D microscopy solution for assessing histological biomarkers. Our approach, based on scalable imaging and image analysis, enable the quantitative evaluation of proteomics targets across entire histological specimens, providing an unbiased view of the tissue sample. In the project, we aim at evaluating, with multiple clinical partners, the predictive and prognostic accuracy histological biomarkers analyzed in 3D vs 2D. If successful, the project could significantly improve the ability of choosing the best treatment for each patient and the stratification of patients when testing new therapies.