Cancer Diagnosis Research
Cancer diagnosis research is the study of the detection and assessment of cancer to improve the accuracy and speed of cancer diagnosis. People with cancer and their health providers use information from diagnostic tools such as laboratory tests and imaging studies, to make cancer care decisions.
Cancer diagnosis research may involve:
- Characterization of prognostic indicators that can help predict the way a cancer will behave and how it will affect a patient
- Identification of molecular markers that can predict the likelihood that a particular treatment will be effective.
- Evaluation of in vitro diagnostics tools for use in research lab and clinical lab settings.
- Clinical validation of diagnostic, prognostic, and/or predictive tools and methods.
Cancer diagnosis research is important because it provides information to help classify cancers, which can provide insight into likely outcomes and inform treatment decisions. Molecular markers are often useful to identify potential targets for cancer therapies.
Related Resources
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Diagnostics and Research Development Resources
Research resources and types of biomarkers that aid in cancer diagnosis.
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Precision Medicine Clinical Trials
Personalized trials that incorporate genetic information, protein targets, environment, and lifestyle specific to patients to diagnose and treat disease.
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Molecular Characterization Laboratory (MoCha Lab)
Providing genomic characterization of biospecimens obtained from patients with cancer in DCTD-supported clinical trials.
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Cancer Imaging Program (CIP)
CIP supports basic and applied research in cancer imaging, including diagnostic imaging, to advance understanding of cancer biology.