New Biomarker Promoting Colorectal Cancer Detection

Scientists from University of Luxembourg have identified a new effective biomarker which could be used to detect colorectal cancer. The study was published in British Journal of Cancer.

Despite progress made during the past decades, Colorectal Cancer(CRC) is still one of the most frequent and deadly cancers world-wide in both women and men. The primary cause of death is the development of distant metastases in organs such as liver and lungs. Strikingly, diagnosed in time, CRC can be cured in 9 out of 10 cases. Thus, it is highly important to identify more sensitive and specific CRC markers to strengthen the efficiency of early diagnosis as well as to improve therapeutic strategies.

Over the past years , some members of the family of suppressor of cytokine signaling(SOCS) proteins have emerged as potential tumor suppressors. In this study, researchers have examined the expression as well as the methylation status of SOCS proteins in primary colon tumors, its precursor lesions and distant normal tissue. They used laser microdissection (LMD) to select for a highly pure population of epithelial cells in primary CRC tumors as well as in normal colon tissue.

The results point towards the involvement of SOCS2 and SOCS6 in the carcinogenesis of CRC and demonstrate their potential use as biomarkers.

Reference:

Letellier E, Schmitz M, Baig K, et al. Identification of SOCS2 and SOCS6 as biomarkers in human colorectal cancer[J]. British journal of cancer, 2014, 111(4): 726-735.

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