In cancer diagnostics skepticism and optimism exist side by side. This is evident from a growing dichotomy between the spurt of early research projects, fueled by new technologies and increased government spending, and the lack of investor interest. Despite a brutal financing market and past disappointments, a few start-ups determined to address the field's unmet needs are pursuing development of new markers and detection technologies and gaining momentum.

Amplistar is pursuing an entirely new approach to cancer diagnostics, one it hopes will allow both earlier and more effective detection of the diseases. Rather than measuring tumor marker proteins (like PSA for prostate cancer, or CA-125 for ovarian cancer), Amplistar aims to identify those tumor targets that produce an immune response in the body. The company believes that antibodies generated in response to tumor antigens may be detectable in the blood earlier than tumor marker proteins.

Genetics and other technological advances are changing cancer diagnostics research, much as they have other areas of medicine, but researchers face, among other hurdles, information overload.