| ■ New breast cancer screening test would use saliva | 2008.01.15 |
| WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Scientists in the United States are developing a screening test for breast cancer that checks a woman's saliva for evidence of the disease to help find tumors early, when they are most treatable. In research published on Thursday, the scientists said they identified 49 proteins in saliva that the screening test would track to distinguish healthy women from those with benign breast tumors and those with malignant breast tumors. Breast cancer triggers a change in the type and amount of proteins in secretions from the salivary glands, said Charles Streckfus, a professor of diagnostic sciences at the University of Texas Dental Branch at Houston. The proteins are produced by tumor cells and affect cell growth, cell metabolism and cell self-destruction -- all of which go awry in cancer, Streckfus said. |