Jun 13, 2009 7:45 am US/Central
Test Provides Hope For Colon Cancer
New, Non-Invasive Procedure Can Help Detect Gastrointestinal Cancers Early On
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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The test is based on the idea that cancerous genetic material usually travels down through the digestive tract after being shed from the surface of cells. (File)
WBZ
Gastrointestinal cancers are responsible for a quarter of all cancer deaths in the U.S., and are often detected too late to be treated, CBS station WCBS-TV reports.
The American Cancer Society reported that digestive tract cancers claimed the lives of almost 150 thousand Americans in 2008.
But according to Dr. David Ahlquist of the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, a new test may help to detect cancers in difficult spots like the colon.
"For the first time, multiple cancers above the colon can be screened or detected with this one common (and) non invasive approach," Ahlquist said.
Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have begun to use stool samples along with a DNA test to detect cancers both in the colon and higher up in the body. This DNA test may offer hope for earlier detection of the disease, and especially for cancers higher in the digestive tract.
Dr. David Clain of Beth Israel Medical Hospital believes the procedure has ground-breaking potential.
"This would be a huge step forward, to be able to test not only specifically (for) colon cancer, but to pick up other cancers like stomach, esophagus (and) pancreas," Clain said.
The test is based on the idea that cancerous genetic material usually travels down through the digestive tract after being shed from the surface of cells. In a study of 140 patients, the DNA stool test detected 100 percent of both stomach and colorectal cancers, as well as 65 percent of all esophageal cancers and 62 percent of pancreatic cancers.
The procedure is also significant because there is currently no routine screening for cancers of the upper-digestive tract. This includes pancreatic cancer, which kills 95 percent of its sufferers within five years.
But Clain added that, although the test is capable of detecting colon cancer, it won't completely replace older, more proven and more invasive methods.
"Ultimately, a colonoscopy is needed," Clain said. "Even if (it's) not for universal screening."
Mayo Clinic researchers said the test is still about five years away from completion.
In the meantime, routine yearly exams can help in the early detection of cancer, and people should see a doctor even for subtle symptoms such as fatigue, appetite loss or bloating.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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