Shelly
01-11-2008, 01:00 PM
...actual breast exams instead
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5445760.html
Jan. 11, 2008, 10:09AM
Saliva test that detects breast cancer in works
A quick exam would make diagnosis as easy as going to your dentist
By TODD ACKERMAN
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Houston researchers are developing a test to diagnose breast cancer from saliva, an advance that eventually should enable dentists and physicians to alert patients during routine office visits.
In a study published Thursday, a team at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, led by a dentist, reported that specific protein markers in saliva can easily identify people with breast cancer cells, benign tumor cells and healthy cells.
"This will be a noninvasive, quick means of detection," said Dr. Charles Streckfus, a UT-Houston Dental Branch professor of diagnostic sciences who has expertise in molecular epidemiology and salivary function. "With it, dentists will be able to catch cancers before a woman can feel a lump."
There currently is not even a blood test for breast cancer.
Streckfus said the screening test would be used in conjunction with other tools, not replace them. Unlike mammograms, for instance, the test can't pinpoint the cancer's site.
Dr. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, said the research is clearly in the preliminary stages but will be "a terrific advance" when it comes to fruition.
"I think advances like this test portend the day when we'll be able to diagnose disease that would be invisible using today's technologies," Lichtenfeld said. "I don't want to say the patients won't miss a beat, but they'll be able to be diagnosed and treated before they would otherwise know they have the disease."
More work ahead
Streckfus said he hopes to launch a large, multi-center trial in about two years — the UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and the UT Dental Branch will collaborate — and seek federal approval within five years. He acknowledged there is much work to do, such as validating the study results in hundreds of saliva samples he has collected over a decade.
The test will be conducted on a gold-plated chip, or lab dish, that can be held in the palm of the hand. A laser distinguishes protein markers in saliva applied to the chip, which was developed by biochemists at UT-Austin.
In the study, reported in the January issue of Cancer Investigation, the team analyzed saliva samples from 30 patients, divided equally among healthy women and those with benign and malignant breast tumors. Researchers reported finding 49 proteins that differentiated the three groups.
In previous research, Streckfus' team was able to identify patients who had malignancies in 85 percent of the cases. That was with one breast cancer protein identified. Streckfus believes that with 49 proteins identified, the accuracy rate should approach 95 percent.
William Dubinsky, a UT-Houston Medical School biochemist who also worked on the study, said saliva offers tremendous advantages over blood beyond the fact that it is easier to obtain. He noted, for instance, that proteins in saliva are more detectable than those in blood.
Streckfus said the test should prove particularly useful for breast cancer survivors who need to be monitored regularly for recurrence. He also said it would be invaluable in Third World countries where few mammography centers are available.
More than 1.2 million people are diagnosed with breast cancer each year worldwide, and more than 500,000 die from the disease each year, according to the World Health Organization. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 180,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year.
Proteins vs. genes
The UT-Houston research team also is pursuing salivary diagnostics for other cancers, including ovarian, cervical, endometrial and head-and-neck.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center last week reported they are developing a saliva test to screen for head and neck cancers. Lichtenfeld said the effort seems a bit ahead of the UT-Houston project, mostly because it involves genes instead of proteins.
The only saliva test for a disease currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration is for HIV-AIDS. It was approved in 2004.
Streckfus said he envisions the screening being used by dentists, much as they test for blood pressure now.
"I see this as a future public health service by dentists," said Streckfus. "Physicians will ultimately make the determination that someone has breast cancer, but most people visit the dentist more often," he said. "Why not the dentist?"
[email protected]
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5445760.html
Jan. 11, 2008, 10:09AM
Saliva test that detects breast cancer in works
A quick exam would make diagnosis as easy as going to your dentist
By TODD ACKERMAN
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Houston researchers are developing a test to diagnose breast cancer from saliva, an advance that eventually should enable dentists and physicians to alert patients during routine office visits.
In a study published Thursday, a team at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, led by a dentist, reported that specific protein markers in saliva can easily identify people with breast cancer cells, benign tumor cells and healthy cells.
"This will be a noninvasive, quick means of detection," said Dr. Charles Streckfus, a UT-Houston Dental Branch professor of diagnostic sciences who has expertise in molecular epidemiology and salivary function. "With it, dentists will be able to catch cancers before a woman can feel a lump."
There currently is not even a blood test for breast cancer.
Streckfus said the screening test would be used in conjunction with other tools, not replace them. Unlike mammograms, for instance, the test can't pinpoint the cancer's site.
Dr. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, said the research is clearly in the preliminary stages but will be "a terrific advance" when it comes to fruition.
"I think advances like this test portend the day when we'll be able to diagnose disease that would be invisible using today's technologies," Lichtenfeld said. "I don't want to say the patients won't miss a beat, but they'll be able to be diagnosed and treated before they would otherwise know they have the disease."
More work ahead
Streckfus said he hopes to launch a large, multi-center trial in about two years — the UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and the UT Dental Branch will collaborate — and seek federal approval within five years. He acknowledged there is much work to do, such as validating the study results in hundreds of saliva samples he has collected over a decade.
The test will be conducted on a gold-plated chip, or lab dish, that can be held in the palm of the hand. A laser distinguishes protein markers in saliva applied to the chip, which was developed by biochemists at UT-Austin.
In the study, reported in the January issue of Cancer Investigation, the team analyzed saliva samples from 30 patients, divided equally among healthy women and those with benign and malignant breast tumors. Researchers reported finding 49 proteins that differentiated the three groups.
In previous research, Streckfus' team was able to identify patients who had malignancies in 85 percent of the cases. That was with one breast cancer protein identified. Streckfus believes that with 49 proteins identified, the accuracy rate should approach 95 percent.
William Dubinsky, a UT-Houston Medical School biochemist who also worked on the study, said saliva offers tremendous advantages over blood beyond the fact that it is easier to obtain. He noted, for instance, that proteins in saliva are more detectable than those in blood.
Streckfus said the test should prove particularly useful for breast cancer survivors who need to be monitored regularly for recurrence. He also said it would be invaluable in Third World countries where few mammography centers are available.
More than 1.2 million people are diagnosed with breast cancer each year worldwide, and more than 500,000 die from the disease each year, according to the World Health Organization. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 180,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year.
Proteins vs. genes
The UT-Houston research team also is pursuing salivary diagnostics for other cancers, including ovarian, cervical, endometrial and head-and-neck.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center last week reported they are developing a saliva test to screen for head and neck cancers. Lichtenfeld said the effort seems a bit ahead of the UT-Houston project, mostly because it involves genes instead of proteins.
The only saliva test for a disease currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration is for HIV-AIDS. It was approved in 2004.
Streckfus said he envisions the screening being used by dentists, much as they test for blood pressure now.
"I see this as a future public health service by dentists," said Streckfus. "Physicians will ultimately make the determination that someone has breast cancer, but most people visit the dentist more often," he said. "Why not the dentist?"
[email protected]