Cancer Markers 101: What You Need to Know
What are tumor markers? A tumor marker is any substance in your body that provides information about a cancer. Traditionally, tumor markers refer to proteins that cancer cells make. Noncancerous cells can also make tumor markers in response to a cancer. But a tumor marker can also refer to mutations (changes) or patterns in your DNA. Other names for tumor markers include cancer markers and biomarkers. Credit: Scientific Research 2021 What do tumor markers tell you? Tumor markers — in combination with other tests — help healthcare providers diagnose and treat certain types of cancer. Tumor markers can: Indicate the presence of certain types of cancer. Help your provider plan treatment. Check whether current cancer treatment is working. Predict your chance of recovery. Monitor for recurrence (return) of certain cancers. Some tumor markers only give information about one specific type of cancer. Other tumor markers give information about more than one type of cancer. Where are ...