Serial analysis of gene expression and cancer

Serial analysis of gene expression has been widely used to characterize gene expression patterns associated with tumor formation. These studies resulted in the identification of tumor-specific markers, transcriptional pathways, or therapeutic targets. In this review, recent applications and developments of serial analysis of gene expression and their impact on the diagnosis and treatment of cancer are discussed. A combination of serial analysis of gene expression and small-scale microarray analysis represents a strategy that should facilitate the identification and exploitation of tumor-specific gene expression for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes. In addition, cancer diagnosis and treatment may benefit from a complementation between serial analysis of gene expression and quantitative proteomics in the future.