Tumor Identified Using Saliva Test
Scientists recently led a study that successfully identified tumor DNA in the saliva of patients with head and neck cancer. This development has the potential to be used for screening, early detection, monitoring during treatment and surveillance after treatment.
“In the near future, there will be a noninvasive test that can be used to monitor cancer.” Dr. Nishant Agrawal
The study involved fewer than 100 patients so more research is necessary to validate the findings in larger groups of patients and in healthy people.
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.
Major risk factors for head and neck cancers are alcohol, tobacco — including chewing tobacco — and HPV (human papillomavirus) infection, the researchers said. These cancers occur in the mouth, including the lips, front of the tongue, cheeks and gums, and in the back of the throat and voice box.
For more details on the study, see it published in Science Transitional Medicine, vol. 7, issue 293, June 24, 2015.
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