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Blood Test For Rare Cancer Shows Promise May 10, 2005 By Steve McNeil - HealthTalk.ca Researchers have developed a blood test that can detect ovarian cancer with 95 percent effectiveness, compared with current testing which is only accurate 10 percent of the time. Ovarian cancer is a rare and lethal disease that is highly treatable when detected in its early stages, making a early detection tool vital for higher survival rates. The specific test looks for four specific proteins in the blood of women that can show if they have the disease. Although the test is accurate, the researchers warned that it is was not good enough to use as a general screening test in the population. Because the proteins in question are not unique to ovarian cancer, more analysis will be needed to determine if it has any clinical relevance. Writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers said, "This test is able to differentiate healthy individuals from ovarian cancer patients with an overall sensitivity/specificity of about 95 percent." The sooner ovarian cancer is found and treated, the better a woman's chance for recovery. But ovarian cancer is hard to detect early. Many times, women with ovarian cancer have no symptoms or just mild symptoms until the disease is in an advanced stage. About 22,000 women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year, however, 80 percent of these cases will detected after the cancer has spread. The American Cancer Society says more than 16,000 women will die from the disease this year. |