Researchers detect breast cancer relapse with blood test
28 Aug 2015
Scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research in London have detected traces of breast cancer eight months before doctors would normally have noticed.
In the trial, the test found 12 cancers out of the 15 women who relapsed.
According to experts, there was still some way to go before a test could be used in hospitals.
Surgery to remove a tumour was among the core treatments for cancer, however, a tumour started from a single cancerous cell and if parts of the tumour had already spread to another part of the body or the surgeon failed to remove it all the cancer could then return.
Fifty-five patients who faced high relapse risk due to the size of the tumour were followed in the study published in Science Translational Medicine.
In the study, the mutated DNA of the tumour was analysed and search for mutations continued in the blood.
Fifteen patients suffered a relapse and the blood test served advance warning on 12 of them.
In the remaining three patients cancer had spread to the brain where the protective blood-brain barrier could have stopped the fragments of the cancer entering the bloodstream.
Cancerous DNA was detected in one patient who had not relapsed.
According to commentators, not only did the test make invasive biopsies unnecessary but because it picked up key mutations it would be able to tailor treatment to the specific genetic make-up of the cancer.
The researchers said it was an important step towards use of 'liquid biopsies' to revolutionise breast cancer care in changing the way cancer was monitored and helping doctors decide on the best treatments.
"We are moving into an era of personalised medicine for cancer patients,'' said professor Paul Workman, chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research, BBC reported.
''This test could help us stay a step ahead of cancer by monitoring the way it is changing and picking treatments that exploit the weakness of the particular tumour. It is really fantastic that we can get such a comprehensive insight about what is going on in the cancer all over the body, without the need for invasive biopsies.''
