Mouthwash 'could detect cancer'
A mouth wash could help to detect head and neck cancer, scientists say
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Tuesday, 01, Jan 2008 11:33
A mouthwash that identifies genetic material has the potential to screen for head and neck cancer in at-risk people, scientists claim.
A team from Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Centre says the mouth rinse, which captures genetic signatures common to the disease, could be useful in helping to identify cancer in groups including heavy smokers and alcohol drinkers.
They asked 211 head and neck cancer patients and 527 people without cancers of the mouth, larynx or pharynx to brush their inside of their mouths and then rinse and gargle with a salt solution.
After collecting the saliva the scientists than filtered out cells thought to contain one or more of 21 parts of chemically-altered genes common to head and neck cancers.
These alterations occur during a process called hypermethylation, a form of which can lead to cancer.
The researchers studied the seven altered genes that are the best cancer predictors within the saliva.
Of the seven best, the team tested panels of three to five genes on saliva rinses.
One panel correctly identified 66 out of 154 patients (42.9 per cent) with the disease, and accurately ruled out the disease in 203 of 248 healthy subjects (81.9 per cent).
"Few tests can be perfect 100 per cent of the time in identifying both normal and cancerous cells," said lead investigator Dr Joseph Califano.
"Because head and neck cancers are not widespread, it makes more sense to screen those at high risk and to focus on a test's ability to accurately rule out healthy people."
He added that the benefits of saliva tests include it being painless and cheap and being able to capture cells from a wide area of the mouth.
The researchers say more studies are needed to refine the test by finding additional genes that play a role in the development of head and neck cancer.
Their research is published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.