New Identification Method for Cancerous DNA to Reduce Need for Painful Biopsy Surgery
|
By LabMedica International staff writers Posted on 09 Sep 2024 |
|
Currently, most cancer patients must undergo an invasive and expensive surgical biopsy to remove a tissue sample from their tumor to determine the best treatment options. However, all individuals have small amounts of DNA that circulate freely in their blood, which is not confined within blood cells. In cancer patients, some of this circulating free DNA (ctDNA) originates from their tumors. This ctDNA differs from their normal circulating DNA as it carries mutations that have turned these cells from healthy to cancerous. Thus, ctDNA can provide insights into the cancer's characteristics and indicate which treatments might be most effective. Existing methods to analyze ctDNA are hampered by its low abundance and the presence of a larger quantity of non-cancerous DNA in the blood samples.
Researchers at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh, UK) are now developing a novel method to identify cancerous DNA that could reduce the need for painful biopsies. This new technique, known as SNARE, aims to simplify the processing of blood samples to enhance the detection and characterization of cancerous DNA. The team is working on creating both robotic benchtop systems and microfluidic platforms (similar to certain types of lateral flow tests) and will evaluate these methods using blood samples from breast cancer patients to achieve more sensitive ctDNA detection and reduce the need for expensive DNA sequencing.
In patients with advanced-stage cancer, significant amounts of DNA in the bloodstream can often be detected, but by this stage, it is frequently too late for a cure. On the other hand, in early-stage cancer patients, where treatment success rates are higher, over 99% of the circulating free DNA typically originates from healthy cells, complicating the identification of cancerous mutations. The Heriot-Watt research team plans to further develop MicroSNARE, which they have already tested in the lab, with the aim of diagnosing, analyzing, and characterizing tumors at an earlier stage. They also aim to detect cancer recurrence before it can progress and spread. MicroSNARE promises a groundbreaking, less invasive approach to cancer detection, potentially enabling earlier diagnosis and intervention.
Related Links:
Heriot-Watt University
Latest Pathology News
- AI-Based Model Predicts Kidney Cancer Therapy Response
- Sensitive and Specific DUB Enzyme Assay Kits Require Minimal Setup Without Substrate Preparation
- World’s First AI Model for Thyroid Cancer Diagnosis Achieves Over 90% Accuracy
- Breakthrough Diagnostic Approach to Significantly Improve TB Detection
- Rapid, Ultra-Sensitive, PCR-Free Detection Method Makes Genetic Analysis More Accessible
- Spit Test More Accurate at Identifying Future Prostate Cancer Risk
- DNA Nanotechnology Boosts Sensitivity of Test Strips
- Novel UV and Machine Learning-Aided Method Detects Microbial Contamination in Cell Cultures
- New Error-Corrected Method to Help Detect Cancer from Blood Samples Alone
- "Metal Detector" Algorithm Hunts Down Vulnerable Tumors
- Novel Technique Uses ‘Sugar’ Signatures to Identify and Classify Pancreatic Cancer Cell Subtypes
- Advanced Imaging Reveals Mechanisms Causing Autoimmune Disease
- AI Model Effectively Predicts Patient Outcomes in Common Lung Cancer Type
- AI Model Predicts Patient Response to Bladder Cancer Treatment
- New Laser-Based Method to Accelerate Cancer Diagnosis
- New AI Model Predicts Gene Variants’ Effects on Specific Diseases
Channels
Clinical Chemistry
view channel
Mass Spectrometry-Based Monitoring Technique to Predict and Identify Early Myeloma Relapse
Myeloma, a type of cancer that affects the bone marrow, is currently incurable, though many patients can live for over 10 years after diagnosis. However, around 1 in 5 individuals with myeloma have a high-risk... Read more
‘Brilliantly Luminous’ Nanoscale Chemical Tool to Improve Disease Detection
Thousands of commercially available glowing molecules known as fluorophores are commonly used in medical imaging, disease detection, biomarker tagging, and chemical analysis. They are also integral in... Read more
Low-Cost Portable Screening Test to Transform Kidney Disease Detection
Millions of individuals suffer from kidney disease, which often remains undiagnosed until it has reached a critical stage. This silent epidemic not only diminishes the quality of life for those affected... Read more
New Method Uses Pulsed Infrared Light to Find Cancer's 'Fingerprints' In Blood Plasma
Cancer diagnoses have traditionally relied on invasive or time-consuming procedures like tissue biopsies. Now, new research published in ACS Central Science introduces a method that utilizes pulsed infrared... Read moreMolecular Diagnostics
view channel
New Genetic Tool Analyzes Umbilical Cord Blood to Predict Future Disease
Children are experiencing metabolic problems at increasingly younger ages, placing them at higher risk for serious health issues later in life. There is a growing need to identify this risk from birth... Read more
Spinal Fluid Biomarker for Parkinson’s Disease Offers Early and Accurate Diagnosis
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative condition typically diagnosed at an advanced stage based on clinical symptoms, primarily motor disorders. However, by this time, the brain has already undergone... 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
New Test Diagnoses Bacterial Meningitis Quickly and Accurately
Bacterial meningitis is a potentially fatal condition, with one in six patients dying and half of the survivors experiencing lasting symptoms. Therefore, rapid diagnosis and treatment are critical.... Read more
Handheld Device Delivers 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 moreTechnology
view channel
Disposable Microchip Technology Could Selectively Detect HIV in Whole Blood Samples
As of the end of 2023, approximately 40 million people globally were living with HIV, and around 630,000 individuals died from AIDS-related illnesses that same year. Despite a substantial decline in deaths... Read more
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
