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Posted on Oct 02, 2008, 7 a.m.
By Rich Hurd
The possibility of a simple saliva test for oral cancer has moved one step closer to reality after researchers identify five biomarkers for the disease.
The possibility of a simple saliva test for oral cancer has moved one step closer to reality after researchers identify five biomarkers for the disease.
David Wong and colleagues from the University of California's Los Angeles School of Dentistry compared saliva from 64 people diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) – which accounts for approximately 90% of oral cancers – with that of 64 people without the disease. The comparison revealed a number of differences in the proteins present in the saliva of participants with OSCC and in those without.
Further investigation led to the identification of five potential biomarkers for OSCC. When the researchers tested for the presence of these biomarkers on a new set of OSCC patients and matched controls they were able to correctly confirm the presence of OSCC in 90% of cases.
The researchers conclude: “The discovery of these new targets may lead to a simple clinical tool for the non-invasive diagnosis of oral cancer. Long-term longitudinal studies with large populations of individuals with oral cancer and those who are at high risk of developing oral cancer are needed to validate these potential biomarkers.”
Hu S, Arellano M, Boontheung P, Wang J, Zhou H, Jiang J, Elashoff D, Wei R, Loo JA, Wong DT. Salivary Proteomics for Oral Cancer Biomarker Discovery. Clin Cancer Res. 2008;14:6246-6252.
