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Tumor Markers
A tumor marker is a Biomarker (medicine), biomarker that can be used to indicate the presence of cancer or the behavior of cancers (measure progression or response to therapy). They can be found in Body fluid, bodily fluids or Tissue (biology), tissue. Markers can help with assessing prognosis, surveilling patients after surgical removal of tumors, and even predicting drug-response and monitor therapy. Tumor markers can be molecules that are produced in higher amounts by cancer cells than normal cells, but can also be produced by other cells from a reaction with the cancer. The markers can't be used to give patients a diagnosis but can be compared with the result of other tests like biopsy or imaging. Classification Tumor markers can be proteins, carbohydrates, receptors and gene products. Proteins include hormones and enzymes. To detect enzyme tumor markers enzyme activity is measured. They were previously widely used, but they have largely been replaced by oncofetal antigens ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biomarker (medicine)
In medicine, a biomarker is a measurable wikt:indicator, indicator of the severity or presence of some disease state. It may be defined as a "cellular, biochemical or molecular alteration in cells, tissues or fluids that can be measured and evaluated to indicate normal biological processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacological responses to a therapeutic intervention." More generally a biomarker is anything that can be used as an indicator of a particular disease state or some other physiological state of an organism. According to the WHO, the indicator may be chemical, physical, or biological in nature - and the measurement may be functional, physiological, biochemical, cellular, or molecular. A biomarker can be a substance that is introduced into an organism as a means to examine organ function or other aspects of health. For example, rubidium chloride is used in isotopic labeling to evaluate perfusion of heart muscle. It can also be a substance whose detection indicates a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
