The present invention relates generally to a method of screening for the level of neoplastic cell death in a subject. More particularly, the present invention provides a method of screening for the level of neoplastic cell death by detecting the level of expression of telomerase protein and/or gene by dead cells in said subject or in a biological sample derived from said subject. The method of the present invention is useful in a range of applications including, but not limited to, assessing a neoplastic condition, monitoring the progression of such a condition, assessing the effectiveness of a therapeutic agent or therapeutic regime and predicting the likelihood of a subject either progressing to a more advanced disease state or entering a remissive state. The present invention also provides diagnostic agents useful for detecting telomerase protein and/or nucleic acid molecules.
