Impact of cancer on forensic DNA methylation age estimation
“[…]age estimation on blood stains from cancer patients might not result in significantly higher estimation errors, except for very aggressive forms of cancer.”
2025-08-21
(Press-News.org)
“[…]age estimation on blood stains from cancer patients might not result in significantly higher estimation errors, except for very aggressive forms of cancer.”
BUFFALO, NY — August 21, 2025 — A new research paper was published in Volume 17, Issue 7 of Aging (Aging-US) on July 17, 2025, titled “The influence of cancer on a forensic age estimation tool.”
In this study by Charlotte Sutter, Daniel Helbling, Cordula Haas and Jacqueline Neubauer from the Zurich Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Zurich and Onkozentrum Zurich, the researchers investigated how cancer might affect the accuracy of forensic tools used to estimate a person’s age from blood samples.
DNA methylation is a natural chemical modification of DNA that changes with age. Forensic scientists can use these changes to predict someone’s age from biological traces, such as blood found at a crime scene. However, medical conditions like cancer can alter these patterns and potentially reduce the accuracy of such predictions. This study investigated whether various cancer types influence the DNA markers used in age estimation.
“Our study is among the first to show whether it might be necessary to account for the influence of cancer on forensic age estimation tools in order to enhance estimation accuracy as much as possible.”
The researchers applied the VISAGE enhanced age estimation tool, a widely used DNA methylation-based method, to blood samples from 100 cancer patients and 102 healthy individuals. Age predictions in the control group were generally accurate, with small average errors. Patients with solid tumors, including breast and lung cancers, showed only slightly less accurate results. In contrast, individuals with blood cancers, particularly chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), sometimes had large errors, with ages overestimated by as much as 50 years.
Despite these few extreme cases, the study found that cancer does not typically have a strong impact on the accuracy of this forensic tool. Most cancer patients, even those undergoing treatment, had DNA methylation patterns similar to those of healthy individuals. The researchers found no consistent differences based on cancer type, stage, or treatment, except in isolated cases involving aggressive forms of cancer.
The findings support the continued use of current forensic age estimation methods. While aggressive cancers may occasionally affect prediction accuracy, such cases are rare. The researchers suggest noting these conditions as a possible factor in unusually large errors, without requiring changes to standard practice.
This study provides valuable information about how health conditions, such as cancer, may influence DNA-based age estimation. It strengthens confidence in the reliability of forensic age prediction tools, even when applied to individuals with a medical history of cancer.
Read the full paper: DOI: https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.206281
Corresponding author: Cordula Haas – cordula.haas@irm.uzh.ch
Keywords: aging, forensic age, estimation age prediction, cancer, DNA methylation, age acceleration
Click here to sign up for free Altmetric alerts about this article.
______
To learn more about the journal, please visit our website at www.Aging-US.com and connect with us on social media at:
Facebook
X
Instagram
YouTube
LinkedIn
Reddit
Bluesky
Pinterest
Spotify, and available wherever you listen to podcasts
Click here to subscribe to Aging publication updates.
For media inquiries, please contact media@impactjournals.com.
END
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2025-08-21
WASHINGTON — Researchers have developed a technique to fold glass sheets into microscopic 3D photonic structures directly on a chip — a process they call photonic origami. The method could enable tiny, yet complex optical devices for data processing sensing and experimental physics.
“Existing 3D printers produce rough 3D structures that aren’t optically uniform and thus can’t be used for high-performance optics,” said research team leader Tal Carmon from Tel Aviv University in Israel. “Mimicking the way a pinecone’s scales bend outward to release ...
2025-08-21
Dr. Matthew Greenblatt will receive the prestigious Paul-Gallin Trailblazer Prize for Physician-Scientists in recognition of his discovery of distinct types of bone-building stem cells in different parts of the body. These unique cells have the ability to create copies of themselves as well as develop into specialized cells that perform distinct functions in the body.
Each year, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health awards the Paul-Gallin Trailblazer Prize to an early- to mid-career physician-scientist who is translating their basic science discoveries into new ways to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure disease ...
2025-08-21
Infection control is paramount in prosthodontics and oral implantology to prevent complications like denture stomatitis and peri-implantitis. While synthetic disinfectants (e.g., chlorhexidine) are widely used, their side effects—including mucosal irritation, toxicity, and antimicrobial resistance—drive the search for safer alternatives. Natural products derived from plants, animals, and minerals offer promising solutions due to their antimicrobial efficacy, biocompatibility, and environmental sustainability.
Key Natural Agents and Mechanisms
Plant-Based Products:
Clove oil (eugenol), tea tree oil (terpinen-4-ol), neem (azadirachtin), ...
2025-08-21
Snow water equivalent (SWE) measurements are critical for water resource management, yet existing remote sensing methods struggle to provide accurate, large-scale estimates. This study introduces a multisensor approach combining optical snow cover data and L-band interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) to enhance SWE retrievals. By analyzing multiple optical snow cover datasets in conjunction with UAVSAR L-band InSAR data, the researchers demonstrate how these combined technologies can effectively address the uncertainties in snow measurement, improving the accuracy of SWE change estimations over snow-covered regions.
Current snow monitoring techniques, particularly those ...
2025-08-21
PULLMAN, Wash. – Washington State University researchers have developed a mathematical model and a set of recommendations to improve liquid hydrogen storage tank operations that could someday make hydrogen a more viable alternative for powering vehicles and other industrial processes.
The researchers used real-world tank data to identify operational regimes in which hydrogen boils off and is lost, which can be as much as 25% of the hydrogen delivered to storage tanks. The work is published in the journal Cryogenics.
“If we want to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and come up with fuel that is clean and produced from renewable energy sources, then liquid hydrogen ...
2025-08-21
Transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) is caused by the misfolding and aggregation of the transthyretin (TTR) protein, leading to multi-organ damage. Two main forms exist: hereditary ATTR (ATTRv), linked to TTR gene mutations, and wild-type ATTR (ATTRwt), associated with aging. Historically underdiagnosed, ATTR carried poor prognoses, particularly in advanced cardiac or neuropathic disease. However, the past decade has seen unprecedented therapeutic advances.
Diagnostic Advances Enable Earlier Intervention
Improved detection ...
2025-08-21
Background and Aims
Patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the immune-tolerant phase may still experience hepatic inflammation and disease progression, and could benefit from early antiviral treatment. This study aimed to investigate changes in the cumulative hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)/HBV DNA ratio in immune-tolerant patients during the transition to the immune-active phase, and to evaluate its potential in predicting the risk of disease progression.
Methods
This longitudinal study included 127 untreated immune-tolerant patients, who were followed for up to 10 years. An independent cohort of 109 subjects ...
2025-08-21
Miami (August 21, 2025) – Prioritizing communications between patients and health care providers and increasing patient education about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) could help improve patient care, according to a new study. The study is published in the July 2025 issue of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases: Journal of the COPD Foundation, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal.
COPD is an inflammatory lung disease, comprising several conditions, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and can be caused ...
2025-08-21
News Release * Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine * August 20, 2025 Media contact: Leslie Raabe lraabe@pcrm.org 443 534 5803
Nation’s Leading Breast Health Advocate Receives Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in Medicine
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Santa Monica Breast Surgeon and Founder of the Pink Lotus Breast Center Kristi Funk, MD, FACS, received the Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in Medicine at the International Conference on Nutrition and Medicine (ICNM) on Aug. 15. The award was presented by Neal Barnard, MD, president of the Physicians Committee ...
2025-08-21
Biological systems have inspired the development of next-generation soft robotic systems with diverse motions and functions. Such versatility in soft robots—in terms of rapid and efficient crawling—can be achieved via asymmetric bending through bilayer-type actuators that combine responsive liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) with flexible substrates. This, in turn, requires temperature-responsive LCEs with accurate temperature regulation via elaborate Joule heating configurations.
However, it is a complicated task owing to the difficulty in generating asymmetric motions using isotropic thermal distributions, necessitating simple temperature ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Impact of cancer on forensic DNA methylation age estimation
“[…]age estimation on blood stains from cancer patients might not result in significantly higher estimation errors, except for very aggressive forms of cancer.”
