If this is not your name, click here.
| | If this is not your name, click here. | | |
| | Contact Us | Order Now | Journals | Bookstore | Register a colleague | | |
| |  Detection of Immune System Markers in Blood Indicates Early-Stage Lung Cancer PHILADELPHIA -- December 2, 2009 -- Researchers have identified immune system markers in the blood that indicate early-stage lung tumours in people at high risk of developing lung cancer. The findings, published online in the December 1 issue of Cancer Research, could lead to a simple blood test to detect lung cancer in its earliest stages. Lead author Michael K. Showe, PhD, Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and colleagues along with collaborators from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and New York University, New York, New York, examined gene expression profiles in blood samples from more than 200 patients with lung cancer or other, nonmalignant lung diseases. Focusing on non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and the large at-risk population of smokers and ex-smokers, the researchers sought to determine whether lung tumours -- even at the earliest stages -- leave a gene expression signature in circulating blood cells. Recent studies have shown that in some late-stage cancers, an immune system response can be detected in the blood, which can help determine responsiveness to therapy or identify markers associated with prognosis. For the study, peripheral blood was drawn from patients with lung disease at both university centres from 2003 through 2007, and the gene expression patterns in the samples were analysed. Researchers were able to identify a 29-gene “signature” that distinguished patients with NSCLC (n = 137) tumours from control patients (n = 91) with nonmalignant lung conditions, with an accuracy rate of 86%. The immune cells of patients with malignant tumours showed changes that distinguished them from those of patients with other lung diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, or benign lung nodules. Eighteen NSCLC patients had peripheral blood drawn before surgery and again 2 to 5 months after their tumours were surgically removed. Of these, 13 samples showed a decrease in or complete disappearance of the tumour gene signature, which was present in the presurgery samples, after tumour removal. With further study, the findings may serve as the basis for developing a simpler screening test for lung cancer. “People routinely get blood taken at their doctor’s offices, for cholesterol levels, diabetes, and other standard tests, so why not utilise this method to screen for other conditions such as the risk of developing lung cancer?” said Louise Showe, PhD, Wistar Institute. “Such a test could be especially useful for remote areas where typically technologies that are used in urban centres are not available. In addition, this test could be useful in a clinical setting to help to decide whether a small tumour detected on an x-ray is likely to be malignant.” Research is ongoing to develop a simpler method for collecting and processing blood samples for analysis. In addition, follow-up data from patients currently gathered will be analysed for signatures of recurrence and/or response to therapy. Additional analyses are also conducted to further explore the basis for the changes in the peripheral immune system after tumour removal. SOURCE: The Wistar Institute
|
