The public is increasingly aware of the link between asbestos and malignant mesothelioma, but that doesn’t make diagnosis any easier. Unless a person displaying symptoms specifically notes their history of exposure to the carcinogen, it is unlikely that their physician will start with the possibility of the extremely rare disease. Still, researchers are developing better and faster diagnostic tools and one that’s on the horizon is a highly accurate saliva test.
Saliva Diagnostics Holds Promise for Faster Mesothelioma Treatment
The faster that a mesothelioma diagnosis is made, the more quickly treatment can begin and the better the patient’s prognosis. Any tool that can speed the process is welcome, and now researchers say that simple saliva tests are on the horizon, including for lung cancer malignancies.
According to Dr. David T.W. Wong, Director of the UCLA Center for Oral/Head & Neck Oncology Research, “In this current era of precision medicine and in personalized medicine, the ability to utilize these bodily constituents – the omics constituents so to speak, that are circulating in our body fluid, and harness this information for health surveillance for disease detection, it’s here in front of us.”
UCLA Lab Working on Saliva Diagnostics for Lung Cancers
Dr. Wong’s lab began working on the malignancy ‘fingerprints’ of lung cancer years ago. Though in his interview with MDLinx.com, he did not indicate that mesothelioma was among the malignancies his team is working on, he noted that research on indeterminate pulmonary nodules is currently being pursued.
“You find a mass in the lung …. We are currently working on this exact project at the time of lesion detection. …. We take a drop of their blood and saliva, and we look for those ‘fingerprints at the time of lesion detection. If we find those ‘fingerprints,’ this patient will be biopsied. So they don’t have to go back, we can find their malignancy ‘fingerprints.’ These fingerprints that are unique to lung cancer are druggable. You can treat them the moment you see these fingerprints.”
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, research holds the key to a better future. If you would like information on the resources that are available to you, contact the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net today at 1-800-692-8608.
