Gary Guishan Xiao¹, Robert R. Recker¹ and Hong-Wen Deng²

¹Osteoporosis Research Center, Departments of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Creighton University, 601 N 30th ST, Suite 6730, Omaha, NE 68131; ²Departments of Orthopedic Surgery and Basic Medical Sciences, University of Missouri—Kansas City, 2411 Holmes Street. Room M3-C03, City, Missouri, 64108-2792.

Abstract

Early diagnosis and prevention is a key factor in reducing the mortality and morbidity of cancer. However, currently available screening tools lack enough sensitivity for early diagnosis. It is important to develop non-invasive techniques and methods that can screen and identify asymptomatic patients who have cancer. Biomarkers of cancer status can also serve as powerful tools in monitoring the course of cancer and in determining the efficacy and safety of novel therapies. Thus, discovery of novel specific biomarkers are needed that may provide informative clues for early diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Recently, remarkable progress has been made in the development of new proteomics technology. The progress that has been made in this field is helpful in identifying biomarkers that can be used for early diagnosis of cancer and improving the understanding of the molecular etiological mechanism of cancer. This article describes the current state of the art in this field.