Possible New Test For Colon Cancer

April 25th, 2010

While there are certain tests that can identify a patient’s risk of colon cancer, researchers believe that they are developing a new urine test that could possibly detect the disease without the need for a colonoscopy.

According to a new study published in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research, scientists believe they are getting closer to developing a urine test for colon cancer, which is the third most common cancer in the U.S.

The researchers are hopeful that these new findings will one day offer alternative testing for colon cancer, negating the need for an invasive colonoscopy. Scientists analyzed the urine of 123 patients, 60 of which who had colon cancer, and 63 without.

Scientists were able to identify 16 substances in the urine that indicated the patient had colon cancer. It was noted that these changes included increased levels of tryptophan, which is one of 22 amino acids that are typically found in proteins.

Source: Better Health Research. April 22nd. 2010