Current Limitations of Cancer Detection

Limitations of Cancer Detection

Today's detection methods can't determine the location of mutated and cancer cells in the body. Sometimes, in cancer detection, scientists are limited to testing blood or saliva samples for specific biological markers that correlate with cancer cells anywhere in the body. Once detected, a biopsy helps determine if cancerous cells invade healthy tissue.

Therefore, the detection process requires two invasive procedures: a test to determine whether cancer is present and a biopsy to confirm the presence of cancerous tissue. It is akin to finding a needle in a haystack: you must search through all the hay before you know if the hand exists. 

Importance of Early Detection of Cancer

An earlier diagnosis is required to detect cancer early when it is most easily treated and cured. However, this comes with significant caveats: the test must be able to distinguish between healthy cells and cancerous or pre-cancerous cells before they become visibly abnormal or symptomatic. Since researchers have yet to discover a foolproof biological marker to identify cancer cells, no such test is available.
Early cancer detection is thus limited to that determined by medical imaging, which detects physical abnormalities. Similarly, no test can determine the location of cancerous cells in the body. While some biological markers can indicate their presence, they cannot pinpoint where in the body they are located.

The Cancer Tumor Environment

• The white represents a detected tumor mass that the current PET or MRI would see with Contrast.
• The green dots would be determined as cancerous upon pathology review under a microscope after surgical removal (surgical margins were the orange line).
• The red dots are cancer or muted cells isolated in good tissue.

Let's Talk About Cancer Detection Methods

Cancer cells share many common traits with healthy, normal cells.
A pathologist must histologically examine the cell structure and confirm malignancy (cancerous cells) to confirm that an abnormality is due to cancerous cells. The only way to get this information is through surgery or biopsy.

Preliminary tests that show promise for detecting cancer without invasive procedures include:

• Flow cytometry: Separates white cells from blood based on their physical properties. It is used with fluorescent staining to determine the presence of proteins associated with certain cancers, such as CEA (carcinoembryonic antigen) and PSA (prostate-specific antigen). This test can help to detect cancer in the bloodstream.
• Water-based ultrasound: Researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City are testing water-based ultrasound, which uses sound waves to identify cells with a high water concentration, on patients. Doctors are using the test to predict the rate at which prostate cancer will progress after surgery.
• CancerSEEK: Scientists at Johns Hopkins University developed a blood test that, in clinical trials conducted on 1,005 patients, accurately detected eight of the most common cancers (lung, colon, breast, or prostate). In addition to detecting cancer, the test can tell patients if they don't have cancer. Researchers presented the test at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting in Chicago.
• Digital Light-based Technology that uses light-emitting nanoparticles to identify cancerous cells in blood samples.
• Non-invasive Prenatal Genetic Testing screens the mother's blood for fetal DNA to determine if the fetus has specific genetic abnormalities. This test does not necessitate amniocentesis, which involves drawing fluid from around an unborn baby in the uterus (womb). It is associated with a 0.1 to 0.5 percent risk of miscarriage.

Current Limitations in Cancer Detection

Most current detection methods rely on identifying known biological markers for cancer, and these markers must be present in abnormally high numbers before they can indicate the presence of cancer. These tests are subject to false positives because other conditions may elevate marker levels. The same applies to screening tests for
early signs of cancer in healthy people. An elevated marker level is not definitive proof of cancer. Further biological testing is required to make an accurate diagnosis.
It is important to note that while there are many screening tests for various cancers available, there is no test that can detect all forms of cancer with equal accuracy.
Primary care physicians or specialists, such as general or gynecological oncologists, administer cancer screenings.
The National Cancer Institute recommends some cancer screening tests based on the patient's age, gender, and family history.

Recently, a new cream-based treatment has shown great success in treating multiple types of cancer. Visit Cancer Cell Treatment for more information.