The topic of this symposium "advancement of biomarkers" focused on biomarkers and laboratory medicine. The following 4 papers were presented: 1. Liver disease diagnoses and new biomarkers, 2. Atherosclerosis and new biomarkers, 3. Leukemia biomarkers, and 4. A new inhibitory factor against erythropoietin for diagnosis and assessment of anemia. As these titles suggest, this symposium covered broad fields of medical practice. All presentations demonstrated the marked development of new biomarkers in association with advanced technology along with improved understanding of disease pathologies. These frontier research areas related to biomarkers lead to the expectation of further novel practical biomarkers in the future. Further explora- tion in all fields for biomarker development will be performed, leading to new clinically practical diagnostic tools. Laboratory medicine will further contribute through the development of novel diagnostic technologies. [Review].