Blood, Saliva Tests May Spot Head and Neck Cancers Early
Study shows potential for noninvasive tumor detection
The researchers found tumor DNA in the saliva of 71 patients (76 percent) and in the blood of 41 patients (87 percent). In 45 of the 47 who who gave both blood and saliva, investigators were able to identify tumor DNA in at least one of the fluids.
Specifically, Agrawal and colleagues searched blood and saliva for traces of HPV, which accounts for a growing number of these cancers. For cancers not related to HPV, they looked for mutations in specific cancer-related genes.
Breaking down the results, Agrawal's team found saliva tests were better at identifying cancers in the mouth, while blood tests detected more cancers in the throat. Combining the two could help identify cancers anywhere in this region, Agrawal's said.
If the test were to become routinely used, Agrawal expects it would cost several hundred dollars, although he'd like to see it priced at less than $50 and given by doctors and dentists.
Dr. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, said if this test and others like it pan out, it will be a major contribution to finding and treating cancers early when they are most curable.
"But this is not something that is ready yet to be used in the clinic," he said.
Lichtenfeld said this approach -- looking for cancer markers in blood -- may also help identify other cancers. However, researchers first need to find the specific DNA that different cancers shed, he said.
"No two cancers have the same DNA mutations," Lichtenfeld said. "It might be possible to have blood tests that detect these specific abnormalities."
This study is an early step, Lichtenfeld added, "but a step that shows we can make this happen."
These Tests May Spot Head and Neck Cancers Early
Study shows potential for noninvasive tumor detection
The researchers found tumor DNA in the saliva of 71 patients (76 percent) and in the blood of 41 patients (87 percent). In 45 of the 47 who who gave both blood and saliva, investigators were able to identify tumor DNA in at least one of the fluids.
Specifically, Agrawal and colleagues searched blood and saliva for traces of HPV, which accounts for a growing number of these cancers. For cancers not related to HPV, they looked for mutations in specific cancer-related genes.
Breaking down the results, Agrawal's team found saliva tests were better at identifying cancers in the mouth, while blood tests detected more cancers in the throat. Combining the two could help identify cancers anywhere in this region, Agrawal's said.
If the test were to become routinely used, Agrawal expects it would cost several hundred dollars, although he'd like to see it priced at less than $50 and given by doctors and dentists.
Dr. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, said if this test and others like it pan out, it will be a major contribution to finding and treating cancers early when they are most curable.
"But this is not something that is ready yet to be used in the clinic," he said.
Lichtenfeld said this approach -- looking for cancer markers in blood -- may also help identify other cancers. However, researchers first need to find the specific DNA that different cancers shed, he said.
"No two cancers have the same DNA mutations," Lichtenfeld said. "It might be possible to have blood tests that detect these specific abnormalities."
This study is an early step, Lichtenfeld added, "but a step that shows we can make this happen."
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