title: The role of biomarkers in cancer clinical trials.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To review strategies to incorporate biomarkers into screening studies, and prevention and therapeutic clinical trials.
  
  
  METHODS
  Published research articles.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The incorporation of biomarkers into cancer clinical trials has been an important advancement in the last two decades of cancer research and has been critical to increasing our understanding of cancer across the spectrum from early lesions to frank cancers. While the incorporation of biomarkers into studies may increase the significance of the results, they also increase cost and a burden on research subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It is important for nurses to have an understanding of both the science and the implications of the biomarkers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA. Mary.Reid@RoswellPark.org
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reid
authors.forename: Joyce
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yasko
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000379:methods; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000451:nursing* / Q000473:pathology; D009859:Oncology Nursing; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor