A simple blood test will reveal five types of cancer at once

American computational biology experts have identified a genomic characteristic in the DNA of cancer cells common to five different types of cancer. This means that it will be possible to diagnose five types of disease at an early stage with one blood test.

A signaling genomic label is formed in the process of chemical modification of DNA, which is called methylation, when a DNA molecule is modified without changing the nucleotide sequence itself. Scientists have found the same methylation marker in five different types of cancer: colon, lung, breast, stomach and endometrial cancer.

The five named types are common and dangerous cancers, so the new test will be extremely useful. If cancer is diagnosed at an early stage, the chances of successful treatment are significantly increased.

The results of the scientific work are published in the journal of Molecular Diagnostics. They are based on previous work by Yelnitski and colleagues, who in 2013 identified a unique signature in the ZNF154 gene and suggested that it is a universal cancer biomarker. And so it turned out.

 "No one in my group slept the next night," the biologist admits. – It was so amazing to find a bimarker candidate. This is the first biomarker of its kind that is suitable for such a large number of cancers" (see the National Human Genome Research Institute press release "NIH researchers identify striking genomic signature shared by five types of cancer").

The admiration of scientists can be understood. Imagine how many millions of lives their discovery can save.

A new scientific paper describes a number of steps necessary to identify a biomarker in each type of cancer. To amplify the "signal" (DNA amplification), a technique known as polymerase chain reaction is used – a method of significantly increasing small concentrations of certain DNA fragments in biological material.

There is no explanation yet why this particular methylation biomarker is characteristic of cancer, but it is already possible to develop a technique for analyzing blood samples in order to apply it in practice.

"We have laid the foundation for the development of a diagnostic test that will give hope to detect cancer earlier and dramatically increase the survival rate of people with many types of cancer," Yelnitski said.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru 10.02.2015