Scientists develop blood test to predict liver cancer
(March 31, 2004)

In a new research conducted at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, scientists have developed a blood test that can predict some future cases of liver cancer in hepatitis B patients.

The test is based on a biomarker that detects mutations in the hepatitis B virus (HBV) that tend to speed up cancer development in people tested positive for the virus.

According to John Groopman, the director of cancer prevention at the Center, "We can use this biomarker to identify patients who may be good candidates for liver cancer prevention studies".

Groopman along with his team conducted initial experiments on 70 liver tumor samples, in which 52 of them were found to have HBV mutations. These mutations were also found in available blood samples from three out of four patients whose tumors were positive for them.

The researchers monitored 120 people in China, in order to determine whether the presence of HBV mutations in the blood could predict future cancers. Liver cancer and HBV infection rates are high in China.

After 10 years, there were six cases of major liver disease, including four cases of liver cancer, one hepatitis case and one patient with liver cirrhosis.

In all six cases, HBV mutations were found in the blood up to eight years before their diagnosis. In another group from China, eight of 15 blood samples from liver cancer patient.