New research from Griffith University in Australia suggests that saliva and blood could be used to detect the return of head and neck cancers—without needing a painful biopsy. The findings are published in VIEW.
This exciting discovery could change how these dangerous cancers are monitored and treated.
Head and neck cancers are serious and deadly. Around 900,000 new cases are diagnosed each year worldwide. Right now, doctors often use biopsies to check if the cancer has returned.
These involve removing a piece of tissue, which can be painful and invasive. But this new study shows that doctors might one day be able to monitor cancer using just a saliva or blood sample.
The research team, led by Professor Chamindie Punyadeera from the Institute for Biomedicine and Glycomics at Griffith University, focused on tiny particles called small extracellular vesicles (small EVs).
These vesicles are released by cancer cells and carry important information about the tumor. The team wanted to know if the small EVs found in saliva and blood could show the same information as those found in the actual tumor.
They found a strong match between the proteins in the tumor EVs and those in blood and saliva EVs. Over 60% of the proteins were the same.
These proteins included ones that are important in how tumors grow, how they affect the immune system, and how they spread. This shows that blood and saliva can carry the same cancer-related signals as the tumor itself.
This discovery means doctors could potentially use saliva or blood tests to track how a cancer is behaving, check if it is coming back, or even guide treatment choices—all without needing to take a piece of the tumor.
Research Fellow Abolfazl Jangholi, the first author of the study, said this could completely change how head and neck cancers are detected and watched over time. It could allow for earlier diagnosis and easier follow-ups, helping doctors create personalized treatments based on the information found in EV proteins.
This approach could also make life easier for patients. Instead of going through stressful and painful biopsies, they might just need to give a saliva or blood sample. That makes this method not only safer, but also more comfortable.
The findings of the study were published in the journal VIEW, in a paper titled “Potential clinical utility of small extracellular vesicles derived from head and neck tumours.” The research is already being recognized as a big step toward using non-invasive methods for cancer diagnosis and care.
Professor Paul Clarke, the Executive Director of the Institute for Biomedicine and Glycomics, praised the team’s work. He said the study is a powerful example of research that can save lives, not just in Australia but around the world.
In conclusion, this research offers hope for a future where head and neck cancers can be tracked using a simple spit or blood test. This would allow doctors to monitor cancer more often and more easily, improving outcomes for patients and reducing the need for painful procedures. More research is needed, but this is a promising start.
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