Biomarkers Promising for Detecting Early Ovarian Cancer

Scientists are working with two biomarkers associated with ovarian cancer cells to develop a new test for the early detection of ovarian cancer.

Ovarian cancer is not usually diagnosed until it is too late for treatment to be effective. A test that could detect the cancer at an early stage could help to save the lives of many women. The new biomarkers show promise as the basis for a blood test that would be able to detect early ovarian cancer. This research is being conducted by scientists at Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc. (Malvern, PA, USA), which licensed the biomarkers from the Pacific Northwest Research Institute (Seattle, WA, USA).

Fujirebio developed the best currently available diagnostic test for ovarian cancer, CA125. While it is useful in diagnosing late-stage cancers and detecting the recurrence of tumors after chemotherapy and radiation, it is not very effective in identifying early-stage disease. Sometimes, it also indicates the presence of ovarian cancer where there is none. Such false-positives lead to dangerous, expensive, and unnecessary treatment.

Because the biomarkers associated with ovarian cancer, HE4 and mesothilin, are molecules secreted readily into the blood, their presence should be detectable if a simple and inexpensive blood test can be developed. In a study reported in the July 1, 2003, issue of Cancer Research, HE4 proved to be at least as effective as CA125. When no false-positive results occurred, HE4's sensitivity to ovarian carcinoma was 40% higher than that of CA 125.

The survival statistics for ovarian cancer are dismal, according to the American Cancer Society. Three out of four cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed in late stages. Last year, 14,000 women died of the disease in the United States alone.

"Unfortunately, ovarian carcinoma is most often diagnosed when it is already in an advanced stage. Even after surgery and chemotherapy, relapses are common,” noted Dr. Ingegerd Hellstrom, a principal scientist at PNRI and the lead author of the article in Cancer Research.

Fujirebio is a leading producer of tumor marker assays. The company was formerly called Centecor Diagnostics, which was acquired in 1998 by Fujirebio, Inc. of Tokyo, Japan.




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