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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.

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