Blood Test Inaugurated for Early Detection of Lung Cancer

A blood test has been made available for the early detection of lung cancer, addressing the need for a widely useable early detection protocol for asymptomatic patients.

The test detects a panel of protein biomarkers in the blood that are associated with early lung cancer and will be initially offered to area primary care physicians to help them identify patients at the highest risk of having lung cancer.

The PAULA's blood test was developed over a period of five years and has been tested using over 1,500 different patient samples. The test has been analytically validated under rigorous scientific and regulatory controls and will be performed in a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)-approved laboratory. A larger national roll out is anticipated in about 18-24 months. PAULA is an acronym that stands for “protein assays using lung cancer antigens".

The PAULA’s Test, a product of Genesys BioLabs (Rockville MD, USA), is a simple blood test which looks at a panel of six proteins in the blood which are known to be associated with lung cancer. By comparison, another commonly given test, prostate specific antigen (PSA), is a blood test for prostate cancer, but only looks at a single protein. The test was introduced to several dozen physicians over the past several weeks including a group of lung cancer specialists who attended the Lung Cancer 2012 conference held during March 2012, in Washington DC (USA).

According to the US National Cancer Institute (Bethesda, MD, USA), 160,000 people die each year from lung cancer, making it the number one cause of cancer death in the United States. Currently, lung cancer is most often detected in the late stages when patients develop symptoms and is associated with poor prognosis. John Gillespie, MD, Genesys BioLabs’ Medical Director, said, "This blood test will allow physicians to greatly improve detection of early-stage lung cancer in asymptomatic patients where treatment will dramatically improve survival. Physicians know that patients have an 80% five years survival rate if lung cancer is caught in the early stages. We’re fortunate to now have a test that physicians can use to test for lung cancer."

Related Links:
Genesys BioLabs
US National Cancer Institute