Simple Blood Test Using UV Light Could Detect Cancer
A new blood test that exposes a person’s blood to ultraviolet light could help doctors in the early detection of cancer.
Varying intensities of UV light cause different amounts of damage to the DNA of white blood cells. British researchers say their Lymphocyte Genome Sensitivity (LGS) blood test measures that degree of damage to distinguish between healthy, precancerous and cancerous cells.
The blood test could be helpful in the early discovery of cancers difficult to detect like pleural mesothelioma. It also could help patients access treatments earlier, and save money on costly invasive testing procedures like biopsies and colonoscopies.
“This is enormous,” University of Bradford School of Life Sciences professor Diana Anderson, Ph.D., told Asbestos.com. She led the team of U.K. researchers developing the LGS blood test. “This is what we've been looking for. It could change a lot of things. The results of this study are remarkable.”
The test does not differentiate between specific cancer types. It only detects if cancer is present.
Details of the study were published in July on the university’s Website and the Journal of Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
Preliminary results show the LGS test accurately identified cancer and precancerous conditions in blood samples from people with melanoma, colon cancer and lung cancer — the only three cancers tested. Anderson believes it will work equally well with other cancers, too.
The U.K. discove...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tim Povtak Tags: Research & Clinical Trials Source Type: news
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