Oct 31, 2005

Make A Cheek Swab To Diagnose Early Lung Cancer

Just do a swab of the inner cheek cells in people who have high risk of developing lung cancer, and this could prove or disprove the presence of lung cancer. Researchers from Canada analyzed the nucleus of cells collected by cheek swab for the presence of some changes to make the diagnosis of early stage lung cancer. These researchers hail this analysis would spur more research into the use of cheek cell analysis as a simple, inexpensive method of early detection of lung cancer, the number-one cancer killer of both men and women.

"Ultimately, this test could be administered in primary-care settings or dental offices. The procedure is simple enough that specimen collection could be done by patients themselves," lead researcher Dr. Bojana Turic, the director of clinical and regulatory affairs at Perceptronix, Inc., in Vancouver, explained in a prepared statement.

The findings were to be presented Monday in Montreal at CHEST 2005, the annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians.

"Previous research has shown that cell nuclear changes can extend a significant distance from the site of a malignancy," Turic explained. "We have already conducted a successful clinical trial for our sputum test for lung cancer. New data suggest that the effects of lung cancer can also be measured as far away as skin cells in the mouth."

In their test, Tutic and his team analyzed randomized cheek scrapings of 150 confirmed lung cancer patients and 990 patients at high risk for the disease. "A sufficient amount of cells can be collected by scraping the inside of the cheek with a small wooden spatula similar to a tongue depressor," Turic said.

According to the researchers, the cheek cell test could detect cancer two-thirds of the time and may have a false positive rate of 30 percent.

Scott      Return to Lung Cancer Blog Main

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Lung cancer
We engage a never-ending daily struggle to understand and defeat the hidden mysteries of cancer. This is a long and laborious fight, but some moments stand out as grim reminders of the severity of the problem and ruthlessness of the enemy.