A simple brush rubbed gently inside the mouth could soon change the way doctors detect oral cancer.
Researchers led by Queen Mary University of London have developed a new test that can identify oral cancer in about one hour without using a painful surgical biopsy.
The study, published in Biomarker Research, suggests that this new approach could prevent more than 90% of unnecessary scalpel biopsies while helping doctors find cancer earlier. Oral cancer is becoming more common around the world. Each year about 650,000 people are diagnosed, and thousands die because the disease is often discovered too late.
In the United Kingdom alone, more than 10,000 people were diagnosed last year. Major risk factors include smoking, tobacco use, drinking large amounts of alcohol, infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), and long-term sun exposure affecting the lips. Early detection is extremely important because treatment is much more successful before the cancer spreads.
Unfortunately, more than half of mouth cancers are not diagnosed until stage IV, when treatment becomes much more difficult. At present, people with suspicious mouth sores often need a scalpel biopsy. During this procedure, doctors cut away a small piece of tissue for laboratory testing.
Although accurate, the procedure can be painful, especially when the tongue is involved. It also carries a risk of infection and, in some parts of the mouth, may damage nearby teeth or bone. Because many suspicious mouth lesions eventually prove to be harmless, many patients undergo invasive procedures they never actually needed.
To solve this problem, the research team created a new version of an earlier genetic test called qMIDS-V3. Instead of removing tissue, doctors simply collect surface cells using a soft brush. The test then measures the activity of four important genes linked with oral cancer. The researchers analysed more than 1,000 samples from 545 patients, making this the largest study of its kind.
The results showed that the brush test performed almost as well as the previous microbiopsy test, despite requiring no tissue removal. According to the researchers, this means more than 90% of people who do not have cancer could avoid unnecessary scalpel biopsies.
Another important advantage is that the brush test can easily be repeated over time. This allows doctors to monitor people with long-lasting mouth lesions that may eventually become cancerous. Repeated testing could detect cancer much earlier without repeatedly exposing patients to painful procedures.
Professor Muy-Teck Teh said the team was surprised that a simple brush sample captured enough biological information to match the performance of a tissue sample. Review and analysis: This study is impressive because it involved a large number of patients and validated a practical test that could improve cancer care.
However, the test will still require wider clinical use and long-term evaluation before becoming standard practice. If future studies confirm these findings, the technology could speed diagnosis, reduce patient discomfort, lower healthcare costs, and improve survival by detecting oral cancer much earlier.
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Source: Queen Mary University of London.
