We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us

Download Mobile App




Novel Technology Enables Detection of Early-Stage Cancer

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 24 Oct 2018
Non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is often fatal because most cases are not diagnosed until they are so advanced that surgical intervention is no longer possible. More...
To improve outcomes a blood test has been developed to detect lung cancer earlier in the disease.

Despite advances in chemotherapy, five-year survival for patients diagnosed with unresectable or a malignancy that cannot be removed completely through surgery, NSCLC is less than 10%. The ability to diagnose NSCLC in stages 1 and 2, when surgical resection and potential cure are still possible, could significantly reduce the mortality from NSCLC worldwide.

Scientists at the University of California Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA, USA) and their colleagues in Taiwan collected plasma samples from 248 patients with radiographically determined pulmonary nodules from December 2014 through March 2016. Of those, 44 were diagnosed with Stage I or Stage II NSCLC; 23 with biopsy-proven benign pulmonary nodules and 21 with Stage I or Stage II adenocarcinoma. Samples were analyzed for the EGFR mutations using the electric field–induced release and measurement (EFIRM) platform.

The team investigated the ability of an EFIRM LB (eLB) assay to detect p.L858R and exon19 del EGFR variants in direct plasma samples from patients with early-stage NSCLC and correlated the results with those from the biopsy of the tumor itself. eLB is an open platform signal amplification technology based on a microtiter plate of 96 gold electrodes obtained from EZLife Bio (Guangzhou, China). Initially, capture probes (100 nmol/L) are copolymerized with conduction gel and pyrrole onto the gold electrodes so that each well contains a single capture probe specific to a single variant. In this assay, either of two well-characterized tyrosine kinase inhibitor–sensitizing EGFR variants, the exon19 del or p.L858R point mutation, were measured.

EFIRM was able to detect the p.L858R mutation in 11 of 12 samples and the Exon 19del mutation in seven of nine samples, resulting in greater than 90% sensitivity and 80% specificity. Visual inspection demonstrates excellent discrimination between the individuals with tumors harboring the exon19 del variant and both the patients with benign nodule (wild type) and those with the p.L858R variant. Results with the exon19 del capture probe demonstrated that none of the patients with benign nodules or those with the p.L858R mutation had electrical current values of <−230 nA, whereas all but one sample from patients with biopsy-proven exon19 del had values of <−240 nA. The 0.978 area under the AUC curve reinforces this observation.

Wu-Chou Su, MD, a co-corresponding author of the study, said, “Currently, the clinical sensitivity of EFIRM to detect patients with NSCLC is limited by the percentage of tumors containing either or both of the two variants, which is estimated at 27% of NSCLC tumors. We are presently developing a 10-variant panel that contains detecting mutations expressed in 50% of all lung malignancies.” The study was published on October 8, 2018, in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.

Related Links:
University of California Los Angeles
EZLife Bio


Gold Member
Quantitative POC Immunoassay Analyzer
EASY READER+
Portable Electronic Pipette
Mini 96
New
Autoimmune Liver Diseases Assay
Microblot-Array Liver Profile Kit
New
Sperm Quality Analyis Kit
QwikCheck Beads Precision and Linearity Kit
Read the full article by registering today, it's FREE! It's Free!
Register now for FREE to LabMedica.com and get access to news and events that shape the world of Clinical Laboratory Medicine.
  • Free digital version edition of LabMedica International sent by email on regular basis
  • Free print version of LabMedica International magazine (available only outside USA and Canada).
  • Free and unlimited access to back issues of LabMedica International in digital format
  • Free LabMedica International Newsletter sent every week containing the latest news
  • Free breaking news sent via email
  • Free access to Events Calendar
  • Free access to LinkXpress new product services
  • REGISTRATION IS FREE AND EASY!
Click here to Register








Channels

Hematology

view channel
Image: New research points to protecting blood during radiation therapy (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

Pioneering Model Measures Radiation Exposure in Blood for Precise Cancer Treatments

Scientists have long focused on protecting organs near tumors during radiotherapy, but blood — a vital, circulating tissue — has largely been excluded from dose calculations. Each blood cell passing through... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: The VENTANA HER2 (4B5) test is now CE-IVDR approved (Photo courtesy of Roche)

Companion Diagnostic Test Identifies HER2-Ultralow Breast Cancer and Biliary Tract Cancer Patients

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in Europe, with more than 564,000 new cases and 145,000 deaths annually. Metastatic breast cancer is rising in younger populations and remains the leading cause... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: An adult fibrosarcoma case report has shown the importance of early diagnosis and targeted therapy (Photo courtesy of Sultana and Sailaja/Oncoscience)

Accurate Pathological Analysis Improves Treatment Outcomes for Adult Fibrosarcoma

Adult fibrosarcoma is a rare and highly aggressive malignancy that develops in connective tissue and often affects the limbs, trunk, or head and neck region. Diagnosis is complex because tumors can mimic... Read more

Technology

view channel
Image: Conceptual design of the CORAL capsule for microbial sampling in the small intestine (H. Mohammed et al., Device (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.device.2025.100904)

Coral-Inspired Capsule Samples Hidden Bacteria from Small Intestine

The gut microbiome has been linked to conditions ranging from immune disorders to mental health, yet conventional stool tests often fail to capture bacterial populations in the small intestine.... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.