LDH Levels Could Predict Kidney Cancer Response to Treatment
|
By LabMedica International staff writers Posted on 22 Aug 2012 |
|
A common enzyme that is easily detected in blood may predict how well patients with advanced kidney cancer will respond to a specific treatment.
In kidney cancer, elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels were considered a risk factor for aggressive disease, signaling tumor progression. Recent studies suggest that elevated LDH may also indicate the activation of key genetic alterations that lead to cancer proliferation. One of these cancer gene pathways relies on a protein called mammalian target of rapamycin, or mTOR, and drugs that are mTOR inhibitors work to shut down the process.
Andrew Armstrong, MD, ScM, associate professor of medicine and surgery at Duke University Medical Center (Durham, NC, USA) and colleagues at Duke analyzed the outcomes of 404 study participants, approximately half of whom received a standard therapy, interferon-alpha, and half who received temsirolimus, a mTOR inhibitor, which has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat kidney cancer. LDH levels had been measured at the start of the study for all participants.
Patients with high LDH levels at the start of the study survived significantly longer on the mTOR inhibitor drug than they did on interferon-alpha. Median survival for patients with high LDH levels was 6.9 months on temsirolimus compared to 4.2 months for the high LDH level patients on the standard drug. At six months, 53.7% of high LDH level patients taking temsirolimus were alive, compared to 39.5% taking interferon-alpha. Patient survival rates at 12 months were 34.3 percent for temsirolimus, vs. 12.7% for interferon-alpha.
Prof. Armstrong, lead author of the study, said that the study statistically proves that LDH is a predictive biomarker for advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), but the results have to be validated before major practice changes take place.
"The advantage of LDH as a predictive and prognostic biomarker rests in its ease of collection, cost, and its routine assessment as part of routine medical care in patients with RCC," the authors wrote.
Related Links:
Duke University Medical Center
In kidney cancer, elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels were considered a risk factor for aggressive disease, signaling tumor progression. Recent studies suggest that elevated LDH may also indicate the activation of key genetic alterations that lead to cancer proliferation. One of these cancer gene pathways relies on a protein called mammalian target of rapamycin, or mTOR, and drugs that are mTOR inhibitors work to shut down the process.
Andrew Armstrong, MD, ScM, associate professor of medicine and surgery at Duke University Medical Center (Durham, NC, USA) and colleagues at Duke analyzed the outcomes of 404 study participants, approximately half of whom received a standard therapy, interferon-alpha, and half who received temsirolimus, a mTOR inhibitor, which has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat kidney cancer. LDH levels had been measured at the start of the study for all participants.
Patients with high LDH levels at the start of the study survived significantly longer on the mTOR inhibitor drug than they did on interferon-alpha. Median survival for patients with high LDH levels was 6.9 months on temsirolimus compared to 4.2 months for the high LDH level patients on the standard drug. At six months, 53.7% of high LDH level patients taking temsirolimus were alive, compared to 39.5% taking interferon-alpha. Patient survival rates at 12 months were 34.3 percent for temsirolimus, vs. 12.7% for interferon-alpha.
Prof. Armstrong, lead author of the study, said that the study statistically proves that LDH is a predictive biomarker for advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), but the results have to be validated before major practice changes take place.
"The advantage of LDH as a predictive and prognostic biomarker rests in its ease of collection, cost, and its routine assessment as part of routine medical care in patients with RCC," the authors wrote.
Related Links:
Duke University Medical Center
Gold Member
Flocked Fiber Swabs
Puritan® Patented HydraFlock®
New
HIV-1 Test
HIV-1 Real Time RT-PCR Kit
New
TORCH Infections Test
TORCH Panel
Latest Clinical Chem. News
- Carbon Nanotubes Help Build Highly Accurate Sensors for Continuous Health Monitoring
- Paper-Based Device Boosts HIV Test Accuracy from Dried Blood Samples
- AI-Powered Raman Spectroscopy Method Enables Rapid Drug Detection in Blood
- Novel LC-MS/MS Assay Detects Low Creatinine in Sweat and Saliva
- Biosensing Technology Breakthrough Paves Way for New Methods of Early Disease Detection
- New Saliva Test Rapidly Identifies Paracetamol Overdose
- POC Saliva Testing Device Predicts Heart Failure in 15 Minutes
- Screening Tool Detects Multiple Health Conditions from Single Blood Drop
- Integrated Chemistry and Immunoassay Analyzer with Extensive Assay Menu Offers Flexibility, Scalability and Data Commutability
- Rapid Drug Test to Improve Treatment for Patients Presenting to Hospital
- AI Model Detects Cancer at Lightning Speed through Sugar Analyses
- First-Ever Blood-Powered Chip Offers Real-Time Health Monitoring
- New ADLM Guidance Provides Expert Recommendations on Clinical Testing For Respiratory Viral Infections
- 3D Printed Point-Of-Care Mass Spectrometer Outperforms State-Of-The-Art Models
- POC Biomedical Test Spins Water Droplet Using Sound Waves for Cancer Detection
- Highly Reliable Cell-Based Assay Enables Accurate Diagnosis of Endocrine Diseases
Channels
Molecular Diagnostics
view channel
RNA-Based Blood Test Detects Preeclampsia Risk Months Before Symptoms
Preeclampsia remains a major cause of maternal morbidity and mortality, as well as preterm births. Despite current guidelines that aim to identify pregnant women at increased risk of preeclampsia using... Read more
First Of Its Kind Test Uses microRNAs to Predict Toxicity from Cancer Therapy
Many men with early-stage prostate cancer receive stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), a highly precise form of radiation treatment that is completed in just five sessions. Compared to traditional radiation,... Read more
Novel Cell-Based Assay Provides Sensitive and Specific Autoantibody Detection in Demyelination
Anti-myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) antibodies serve as markers for an autoimmune demyelinating disorder that affects the peripheral nervous system, leading to sensory impairment. Anti-MAG-IgM antibodies... Read more
Hematology
view channel
New Scoring System Predicts Risk of Developing Cancer from Common Blood Disorder
Clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS) is a blood disorder commonly found in older adults, characterized by mutations in blood cells and a low blood count, but without any obvious cause or... Read more
Non-Invasive Prenatal Test for Fetal RhD Status Demonstrates 100% Accuracy
In the United States, approximately 15% of pregnant individuals are RhD-negative. However, in about 40% of these cases, the fetus is also RhD-negative, making the administration of RhoGAM unnecessary.... Read more
Immunology
view channel
Stem Cell Test Predicts Treatment Outcome for Patients with Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer
Epithelial ovarian cancer frequently responds to chemotherapy initially, but eventually, the tumor develops resistance to the therapy, leading to regrowth. This resistance is partially due to the activation... Read more
Machine Learning-Enabled Blood Test Predicts Immunotherapy Response in Lymphoma Patients
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has emerged as one of the most promising recent developments in the treatment of blood cancers. However, over half of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) patients... Read more
Microbiology
view channel
Handheld Device Deliver Low-Cost TB Results in Less Than One Hour
Tuberculosis (TB) remains the deadliest infectious disease globally, affecting an estimated 10 million people annually. In 2021, about 4.2 million TB cases went undiagnosed or unreported, mainly due to... Read more
New AI-Based Method Improves Diagnosis of Drug-Resistant Infections
Drug-resistant infections, particularly those caused by deadly bacteria like tuberculosis and staphylococcus, are rapidly emerging as a global health emergency. These infections are more difficult to treat,... Read more
Breakthrough Diagnostic Technology Identifies Bacterial Infections with Almost 100% Accuracy within Three Hours
Rapid and precise identification of pathogenic microbes in patient samples is essential for the effective treatment of acute infectious diseases, such as sepsis. The fluorescence in situ hybridization... Read more
Pathology
view channel
Advanced Imaging Reveals Mechanisms Causing Autoimmune Disease
Myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disease, leads to muscle weakness that can affect a range of muscles, including those needed for basic actions like blinking, smiling, or moving. Researchers have long... Read more
AI Model Effectively Predicts Patient Outcomes in Common Lung Cancer Type
Lung adenocarcinoma, the most common form of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), typically adopts one of six distinct growth patterns, often combining multiple patterns within a single tumor.... Read more
Technology
view channel
Pain-On-A-Chip Microfluidic Device Determines Types of Chronic Pain from Blood Samples
Chronic pain is a widespread condition that remains difficult to manage, and existing clinical methods for its treatment rely largely on self-reporting, which can be subjective and especially problematic... Read more
Innovative, Label-Free Ratiometric Fluorosensor Enables More Sensitive Viral RNA Detection
Viruses present a major global health risk, as demonstrated by recent pandemics, making early detection and identification essential for preventing new outbreaks. While traditional detection methods are... Read more
Industry
view channel
Cepheid and Oxford Nanopore Technologies Partner on Advancing Automated Sequencing-Based Solutions
Cepheid (Sunnyvale, CA, USA), a leading molecular diagnostics company, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (Oxford, UK), the company behind a new generation of sequencing-based molecular analysis technologies,... Read more
Grifols and Tecan’s IBL Collaborate on Advanced Biomarker Panels
Grifols (Barcelona, Spain), one of the world’s leading producers of plasma-derived medicines and innovative diagnostic solutions, is expanding its offer in clinical diagnostics through a strategic partnership... Read more
