Scientists discover new test for cancer
QUEENSLAND researchers have developed a test that can detect cancer in any tissue type, including blood, in what is hoped to be a “game changer” for cancer diagnosis.
The scientists from the University of Queensland’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology designed the simple, quick and inexpensive test based on a unique chemical signature that appears common to all types of cancer.
Although the research is still in its early stages, and needs to be validated in thousands of patients, they are searching for a commercial partner to develop the test.
The scientists, including Professor Matt Trau, Dr Laura Carrascosa and Dr Abu Sina, invented the technology around changes in chemical patterns on the DNA of cancer cells compared to healthy cells.
Using a festive season analogy, Dr Carrascosa said it was similar to finding different decorations on Christmas trees. “The tree is the DNA. Normal cells tend to have decorations that cover the entire tree,” she said. “When cancer happens, the tree loses most of its decoration. The baubles that are left tend to cluster only on some parts of the tree.”
They found the DNA marker in every type of breast cancer they examined, and in other forms of cancer, including prostate, colorectal and lymphoma.
Dr Carrascosa said the test had been trialled on 200 tissue samples, detecting cancer with up to 90 per cent accuracy.
At this stage, the test only indicates whether someone has cancer, but cannot tell the type of cancer they have or how advanced it is.