Antibody microarrays as tools for biomarker discovery.

The cancer biomarkers field is being enriched by molecular profiling obtained by high-throughput approaches. Targeted antibody arrays are strongly contributing to the identification of protein cancer -biomarker candidates and functional proteomic analyses. Due to their versatility, novel technological and experimental design implementations are broadening the applications of antibody arrays. However, the cancer biomarker candidates delivered to date using this technology are still in their early developmental phase, requiring validation with high number of specimens focusing on specific clinical endpoints. Innovative strategies multiplexing protein measurements of protein extracts of cultured cells, tissue and body fluids using antibody arrays combined with appropriate validation approaches are enabling the -discovery of cancer-associated biomarkers. This review describes these strategies and cancer biomarker candidates reported to date that may assist in the diagnosis, surveillance, prognosis, and potentially for predictive and therapeutic purposes for patients affected with solid and hematological neoplasias.