Immunotherapy - NFCR Cancer Research Focus Area

Cancer Diagnosis

Cancer Diagnosis

What is Cancer Diagnosis?

Cancer diagnosis research aims to develop improved technologies and techniques for detecting and characterizing cancer, determining its stage, selecting appropriate treatments, and monitoring patient outcomes. Major areas of focus include discovering and validating diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive biomarkers; improving imaging and molecular profiling to define tumor characteristics; and advancing integrated diagnosis systems to enable precision oncology.

Accurate diagnosis across all cancer phases, from risk assessment through early detection, localized disease, and late-stage progression, provides vital information guiding timely intervention and optimal care for better outcomes. Ongoing diagnosis monitoring also gives critical insight into treatment efficacy and disease recurrence.

NFCR IMPACTS IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS

  • NFCR provides funding for research correlating novel diagnostic markers with tumor biology and treatment outcomes, expanding cancer characterization for better-informed care.
  • NFCR supports studies integrating imaging with genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics to advance diagnostics for localized and recurrent tumors.
  • Through its seed grant initiatives, NFCR enables proof-of-concept studies on early-stage diagnostic technologies to accelerate development into clinical tools.

NFCR-Supported Researchers Working on Cancer Diagnosis

Paul Fisher, M.Ph., Ph.D.

Aaron N. Hata, M.D., Ph.D.
Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital

Webster K. Cavenee, Ph. D.

Aaron N. Hata, M.D., Ph.D.
Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital

Paul Schimmel, Ph.D.

Aaron N. Hata, M.D., Ph.D.
Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital

Xiang-Lei Yang, Ph.D.

Aaron N. Hata, M.D., Ph.D.
Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital

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