Early detection has the potential to change the way cancer is treated and the results that can be achieved, especially for cancers such as liver cancer, which is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage with few options for cure. According to a new study, proteins found in the blood could help improve predictions about the risk of liver cancer years before it is typically diagnosed.
Early detection has the potential to transform treatment and outcomes in cancer care, especially for cancers like liver cancer, which is typically diagnosed at a late stage with limited options for cure. A new study led by investigators from Mass General Brigham and rnrnBeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has found that proteins found in the blood may be able to help predict the risk of liver cancer years before it is typically diagnosed. The results of their study have been published in JNCI.
Lead author Xinyuan (Cindy) Zhang, PhD, from the Channing Division of Network Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, stated that liver cancer rates are on the rise and that it has a high mortality rate. However, early diagnosis could potentially lead to curative therapeutic interventions. This emphasizes the need to detect liver cancer early in order to intervene with surgery or other treatments transplantation to treat the disease before it becomes metastatic.
Liver cancer, or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is the third leading cause of cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. Its incidence rate has nearly tripled since the 1980s in the US. Liver cancers are often detected at advanced stages, with a life expectancy of less than 12 months. High-risk populations, such as individuals with cirrhosis and hepatitis, could greatly benefit from early detection tests. However, there is currently a lack of accurate, sensitive, and specific tools for detection.Early identification of liver cancer is challenging due to the high cost, invasiveness, and limited accessibility of existing methods, which are typically only available in major hospitals. The research team involved investigators from Mass General Brigham’s founding members, including Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Yale University. They utilized proteomics, which involves profiling proteins, to create a prediction model for the early detection of liver cancer. The team used the SomaScan Assay Kit, a high-throughput proteomics platform.The technology that measures protein levels in biological samples is now available through the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology Center. With the SomaScan platform, researchers can now detect very low levels of circulating proteins that might indicate the early stages of a disease. This platform can measure 1,305 proteins simultaneously in the blood.
Co-senior author Towia A. Libermann, PhD, from the Division of Interdisciplinary Medicine and Biotechnology said, “It has always been difficult to find specific disease biomarkers in the blood using traditional methods, but this new technology allows us to identify a wide range of both high and low abundant proteins.”Version of Interdisciplinary Medicine and Biotechnology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. “Our data has revealed new understandings of the biological processes that lead to the development of liver cancer. This may help us identify new targets for treatment. Additionally, we were able to confirm the early detection biomarkers using different protein analysis methods and a separate group of participants from the UK.”
The research team utilized SomaScan to examine plasma samples from individuals in both the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professional Follow-Up Study, which are two ongoing, long-term prospective cohorts in the U.S. NThe researchers analyzed blood samples taken from people an average of 12 years before they were diagnosed with liver cancer in order to identify protein biomarker signals. They then checked medical records to confirm whether these patients did develop liver cancer.
Out of the blood samples, the researchers found 56 plasma proteins that had much higher levels in people with liver cancer compared to those without it. They used four of these proteins to create a predictive model, which they tested on the UK Biobank Pharma Proteomics datas.
It was composed of 50,000 people, 45 of whom were found to have liver cancer. The model they developed was more accurate in predicting liver cancer compared to traditional risk factors.
The authors warn that their study only included a small number of liver cancer cases and that further validation is necessary in larger and more diverse patient populations, as well as in high-risk populations.
“Although further investigation in different populations is necessary, our results show a strong protein profile associated with liver cancer years before diagnosis, which is significant,” said co-senior author Xuehong Zhang, MBBS, ScD.
During the study, Zhang worked at the Channing Division of Network Medicine at the Brigham and is now at Yale.
The study team also plans to expand their methodology to discover more plasma protein biomarkers using the larger SomaScan assay that measures 11,000 proteins. They also want to explore biomarkers associated with various types of cancer and gain a better understanding of the role of liver cancer risk factors in specific patient populations. The protein biomarkers investigated in the study could potentially be used as a non-invasive test for assessing liver cancer risk, if further progress is made.
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