Whole blood, plasma, and/or serum specimens will be collected from patients with active cancer, patients in cancer remission, patients diagnosed with benign disease, and healthy volunteers. These blood samples will be used to perform various studies to determine the utility of select DNA methylation markers for cancer diagnostic or prognostic indications.
To acquire blood samples from subjects for various purposes, including: i) determining the sensitivity and specificity of select DNA methylation markers for the detection of various types of cancer, ii) identifying benign conditions that may induce false positive or false negative results, and iii) defining the effects of potential interfering substances, such as chemotherapy drugs.