Pancreatic cancer has the highest mortality rate of all major cancers and the survival rate has remained low for over 30 years. This is the case because the most common type of pancreatic cancer—known as Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC)—is often diagnosed at later stages in the disease, after it has spread to other parts of the body.
For a number of conditions, measuring levels of proteins in the blood—known as serum biomarkers—can enable physicians to confidently determine whether symptoms are the result of disease. For PDAC, the CA19.9 protein is the only approved biomarker; unfortunately, CA19.9 lacks the sensitivity and specificity required to identify patients with earlier stages of the disease.
A recent study, led by PM and TGHRI Clinical Researcher Dr. Ivan Blasutig, addresses this issue by testing a diverse group of new and existing biomarkers for their ability to identify pancreatic cancer. Dr. Blasutig's team tested the biomarkers, alone and in combination, in blood samples from patients with early and late stages of the disease. The results showed that a combination of three biomarkers—CA19.9, CA125 and LAMC2—was more effective at detecting the disease than CA19.9 alone.
Dr. Blasutig adds, "Our biomarker combination was better at identifying early stages of the disease. Thus, these biomarkers may enable physicians to begin treating those patients who will benefit most."
This study was supported by The Early Detection Research Network through the National Cancer Institute, the Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation and the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation.
Validation of biomarkers that complement CA19.9 in detecting early pancreatic cancer. Chan A, Prassas I, Dimitromanolakis A, Brand R, Serra S, Diamandis EP, Blasutig IM. Clinical Cancer Research. 2014 September 19. [Pubmed abstract]
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