A promising breath-test for cancer

The global quest to use a person’s breath analysis for rapid, inexpensive and accurate early-stage testing for cancer and other diseases has taken a leap forward.

In a new paper in the British Journal of Cancer, Flinders University researchers have reported significant progress in developing a method to test exhaled breath profiles which accurately differentiate head and neck cancer from non-cancer patients.

The Australian researchers collected breath samples from 181 patients suspected of having early-stage head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) before any treatment began.

“We sought to determine the diagnostic accuracy of breath analysis as a non-invasive test for detecting head and neck cancer, which in time may result in a simple method to improve treatment outcomes and patient morbidity,” says lead researchers Dr. Roger Yazbek and Associate Professor Eng Ooi.

Worldwide, head and neck cancer accounts for 6% of all cancers, killing more than 300,000 people per year globally. Tobacco, alcohol and poor oral hygiene are known major risk factors for this cancer.

A surge in human papilloma virus (HPV)-associated head and neck cancers is seeing these cancers affecting a much younger population, the researchers say.

Current therapies are effective at treating early-stage disease, however late-stage presentations are common, and often associated with poor prognosis and high treatment-related morbidity.

In the Australian study, a selected ion flow-tube mass spectrometer was used to analyze breath for volatile organic compounds. Using statistical modeling, the Flinders researchers were able to develop a breath test that could differentiate cancer and control (benign disease) patients, with an average sensitivity and specificity of 85%.

Diagnosis was confirmed by analysis of tissue biopsies.

Source: Read Full Article