title: Promises and limitations of biomarkers.
abstract: In many "omics" fields, extraordinary promises have been made about the ability of biomarkers for detecting early cancer, for predicting prognosis, and for predicting response to therapy. Yet very few markers are brought to clinical practice, and many are not even found to be reproducible. This essay discusses chance and bias as threats to validity that can explain the huge disconnect between promise and product, along with approaches to address those threats.
authors.affiliation: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 27599-7360, USA. ransohof@med.unc.edu
authors.forename: David F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Ransohoff
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor