Cancer is still the second leading cause of death in the United States and earlier diagnosis and effective therapies remain the holy grail of research paradigms. Cancer biomarkers have emerged as an invaluable tool in the achievement of this goal. Technological advancements and greater understanding of the molecular mechanisms of cancer have transformed biomarker research from an observational byproduct of cancer research into a biomedical research field in its own right. Despite the explosion of biomarker discovery over the last decade, few have been translated into clinical use. Here we discuss the current state of biomarker development and the challenges that have tempered their clinical potential.
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