Blood test may detect mesothelioma at early stages

October 18, 2005

Researchers at the NYU School of Medicine and Wayne State University have discovered a molecule that may be able to detect mesothelioma it its early stages.

Pleural mesothelioma is a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos that affects the chest. Currently, there is no established screening method for detecting pleural mesothelioma, so the discovery is considered significant. The molecule the researchers discovered can show pleural mesothelioma at its early stages.

The researchers hope the findings can lead to screening methods in the near future. Most cases of mesothelioma is detected at such an advanced stage that treatments are ineffective and patients only live for another eight to 18 months.

Published in the Oct. 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the study found pleural mesothelioma patients have elevated levels of a protein called osteopontin. Every year, 2,500 to 3,000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma in the United States.

The majority of mesothelioma patients have been exposed to asbestos in the workplace.

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