(Press-News.org) Augusta, Ga. – Researchers have found a way to make early liver cancer show its true colors.
They have developed a test that will help pathologists clearly distinguish early liver cancer cells from nearly identical normal liver cells by giving them a distinctive red-brown hue.
The inability to definitively tell the difference often means the disease is detected late when treatment options are less effective, said Dr. Ravindra Kolhe, pathologist and Medical Director of the Georgia Esoteric, Molecular Labs, LLC, at the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University.
"There is no definitive test for early diagnosis of liver cancer," said Kolhe, lead author of the study being presented at the American Society of Clinical Pathology 2013 Annual Meeting in Chicago, Sept. 18-21. "Our test adds a level of comfort for making the diagnosis."
"The deadly liver cancer cells seek to recapitulate the appearance of normal liver cells," said Dr. Amyn M. Rojiani, Chairman of MCG's Department of Pathology. And they are very good at that, the pathologists agree, which is the frustration they have when trying to give patients definitive answers from looking at the tiny core biopsies of their liver under the microscope.
"As pathologists, we often find ourselves wanting to know more," said Dr. Andy Rahardja, a pathology resident who worked on the project. "Our test helps us differentiate between the two."
Unfortunately early liver cancer also is mostly silent. By the time it's large enough to cause classic symptoms such as abdominal pain and weight loss, the cancer cells look distinctive but the liver is failing. The myriad of treatment options - from removing the diseased portion of the liver to liver transplants to freezing or heating cancer cells - have a high chance of failing as well, Kolhe said.
"You want to make the correct diagnosis as early in the game as you can," Kolhe said. He began collaborating with BioGenex laboratories, a California company with expertise in cell and tissue testing, to develop a probe that gives cancer cells the distinctive red-brown hue. The probe detects and stains a microRNA called mir-21, which is found in liver cancer but not healthy liver cells, Kolhe said.
Unlike RNA, microRNA doesn't make proteins rather helps control proteins that are expressed by RNA. That means it's more stable and can survive harsh chemicals normally used to prepare the biopsy for microscopic evaluation. This includes using formaldehyde and replacing natural fluids with paraffin so the tissue can be easily cut and stained with different reagents to help pathologists try to pinpoint a patient's problem.
For the study, they used their probe on biopsies of 10 healthy livers and 10 livers with early cancers. In every case of liver cancer, the biopsy took on the red-brown hue. The probe was not detected in normal cells. The studies were done retrospectively, so they already knew which patients ultimately were diagnosed with cancer. They are now using the test on 200 similar cases of liver cancer.
The group also is exploring this approach in other hard-to-detect-early cancers. Kolhe worked with pathology resident Dr. Puneeta Vasa to identify microRNAs selectively expressed in melanoma. Under the microscope, the potentially deadly skin cancer cells look a lot like common mole cells. These findings also will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Pathology meeting and the researchers are working with BioGenex to develop probes to make melanoma-relevant microRNA stand out as well.
In the case of diagnosing early liver cancer, the physicians note that cirrhosis, a massive scarring of the liver resulting from chronic infection with hepatitis B and C viruses, further muddies the current diagnostic waters by essentially giving cancer cells cover. These common viruses are the most common cause of liver cancer worldwide, according to the American Cancer Society. Alcohol abuse, a leading cause of cirrhosis in the United States, also is a risk factor for liver cancer. The new probe fortunately does not interact with cirrhosed cells, Kolhe said.
INFORMATION:
Toni Baker
Communications Director
Medical College of Georgia
Georgia Regents University
706-721-4421 Office
706-825-6473 Cell
tbaker@gru.edu
New test enables early diagnosis of liver cancer
2013-09-20
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
New models of drug-resistant breast cancer hint at better treatments
2013-09-20
Breast cancer that spreads to other organs is extremely difficult to treat. Doctors can buy patients time, but a cure remains elusive. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown that human breast tumors transplanted into mice are excellent models of metastatic cancer and could be valuable tools in the search for better treatments.
According to new research published Sept. 19 in Cell Reports, these transplanted tumors maintain the genetic errors that caused the original cancer, even though they are growing in mice. As such, mice ...
Cutting off all points of escape for melanoma cells
2013-09-20
Despite the success of recent approved therapeutics to treat advanced melanoma, metastatic cancer cells inevitably evolve resistance to drugs. In the journal Cell Reports, a team of researchers based at The Wistar Institute, report on the mechanics by which melanoma can evolve resistance to a powerful combination of drugs—BRAF and MEK inhibitors.
They found that resistant melanomas acquired a mutation in the MEK2 gene and multiple copies of the mutant BRAF oncogene, simultaneously decreasing the sensitivity to both drug targets. Their findings also uncovered a new potential ...
Protein 'motif' crucial to telomerase activity, Wistar researchers say
2013-09-20
It is difficult to underestimate the importance of telomerase, an enzyme that is the hallmark of both aging and the uncontrolled cell division associated with cancer. In an effort to understand and control telomerase activity, researchers at The Wistar Institute have discovered a protein "motif," named TFLY, which is crucial to the function of telomerase. Altering this motif disrupts telomerase function, they found, a fact that they believe will help them in their efforts to identify inhibitors of telomerase with potential cancer therapeutic properties.
Their findings ...
Worm research: Right combination of sugars regulates brain development
2013-09-20
If the development of our nervous system is disturbed, we risk developing serious neurological diseases, impairing our sensory systems, movement control or cognitive functions. This is true for all organisms with a well-developed nervous system, from man to worm. New research from BRIC, University of Copenhagen reveals how a tiny molecule called mir-79 regulates neural development in roundworms. The molecule is required for correct migration of specific nerve cells during development and malfunction causes defects in the nervous system of the worm. The research has just ...
Cleveland Clinic study shows long-term effects of bariatric surgery in patients with Type 2 diabetes
2013-09-20
Thursday, September 19, 2013, Cleveland: Overweight patients with type 2 diabetes continue to experience the benefits of bariatric surgery up to nine years after the procedure, according to new research from Cleveland Clinic's Bariatric & Metabolic Institute, published online today in the journal, Annals of Surgery.
Prior research has shown that bariatric surgery effectively treats diabetes and reduces cardiovascular risk factors, but few studies have reported the long-term metabolic effects of bariatric surgery. This trial shows that obese patients with type 2 diabetes ...
Older adults live longer with a few extra pounds -- if they don't add more
2013-09-20
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Some overweight older adults don't need to lose weight to extend their lives, but they could risk an earlier death if they pack on more pounds.
In fact, the nationwide study found that people who were slightly overweight in their 50s but kept their weight relatively stable were the most likely to survive over the next 16 years.
They had better survival rates than even normal-weight individuals whose weight increased slightly, but stayed within the normal range.
On the other hand, those who started out as very obese in their 50s and whose weight continued ...
Got calcium? Mineral is key to restoring acid rain-damaged forests
2013-09-20
Berkeley — Calcium can do much more than strengthen bones. The mineral is a critical nutrient for healthy tree growth, and new research shows that adding it to the soil helps reverse the decades-long decline of forests ailing from the effects of acid rain.
The paper, published today (Thursday, Sept. 19), in the journal Environmental Science and Technology (EST) Letters, and led by John Battles, professor of forest ecology at the University of California, Berkeley, also presents strong evidence that acid rain impairs forest health.
The paper reports on 15 years of ...
The coelacanth leads a monogamous life
2013-09-20
Scientists have successfully analysed the genetic make-up of the offspring of pregnant coelacanth females for the first time. They found that the likelihood that the offspring is fathered by one single individual is very high – unlike with many other fish species. Dr Kathrin Lampert from the Ruhr-Universität Bochum and Prof Dr Manfred Schartl from the University of Würzburg, together with their colleagues, report about their findings in the journal "Nature Communications".
Analysis of the microsatellite DNA
The pregnant coelacanth females studied by the researchers ...
A possible strategy for helping 'tired' cells affected by mitochondrial disease
2013-09-20
The breakthrough concerns a gene called OPA1, which when mutated is responsible for dominant optic atrophy, a hereditary visual disease characterized by a progressive and symmetrical loss vision that becomes apparent early in life.
In an in-depth study of OPA1, groups led by Dr. Luca Scorrano, professor of Biochemistry at the University of Padua and researcher of the Dulbecco Telethon Institute, and Dr. José Antonio Enríquez, coordinator of the Tissue Homeostasis and Repair Program at the CNIC, found that this gene has the capacity to act as a "helper" in cellular metabolism, ...
UPNA develops a method that automatically delimits areas of the brain in medical images
2013-09-20
A piece of research submitted by the Artificial Intelligence and Approximate Reasoning Group (GIARA) of the NUP/UPNA-Public University of Navarre received an award from the European Association of Fuzzy Logic and Soft Computing (EUSFLAT) during its biennial meeting (EUSFLAT 2013) held in Milan last week. The researchers have developed a method that improves the delimitation of tumours in medical images. As they explained, "when the doctor decides where tumour tissue should be separated from healthy tissue, our algorithm ensures that he/she is never going choose the worst ...