Molecular profiling of lung carcinoma: identifying clinically useful tumor markers for diagnosis and prognosis

The overall survival of patients with lung cancer is dismal despite extensive effort in improvement of diagnosis and treatment. A better understanding of the multistep genetic and epigenetic alterations in lung cancer pathogenesis and progression is necessary for development of improved diagnostic approaches and new targeted therapies. Identification of molecular alterations in the early lung carcinogenesis, together with advanced molecular techniques, may facilitate development of rapid and effective methods for early diagnosis and prognosis of lung carcinoma. In this review, we discuss current understanding of lung carcinogenesis and prospective molecular markers in lung cancer diagnosis. Although the impact of translating new technologies into clinical practice on survival has not been completely determined, they offer a new avenue of exciting novel approaches to early diagnosis of this deadly disease.