Researchers have developed a new blood test that detects early stage ovarian cancer and may determine whether a pelvic mass is benign or cancerous with 91 per cent accuracy, a rate better than existing tests.
The test known as OvaPrint uses an approach known as cell-free DNA methylation, a promising new way to detect early-stage cancers of various types.
The test searches for DNA fragments circulating in the blood that have been methylated at certain nucleic acids. Methylation is a complex modification of DNA in cells that can alter the way genes are expressed in the body — and can also be used as a biological marker of disease.
By testing for these early molecular changes, OvaPrint identifies high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) when the cancer is new and relatively easy to treat, unlike most existing tests for ovarian cancer.
HGSOC is the most common type of ovarian cancer. It is also the most lethal form, in part because clinicians do not have effective ways to screen women for it during the cancer’s early stages, when it’s easiest to treat. For patients with a pelvic mass (an abnormal lump or growth in the lower abdomen), it is difficult to detect whether the growth is benign or cancerous ahead of surgery.