Doctors may soon have a much easier way to check whether a suspicious sore inside the mouth is cancer.
Scientists from Queen Mary University of London and their international collaborators have developed a rapid brush test that may replace many painful surgical biopsies.
Their research, published in Biomarker Research, shows that the test can detect oral cancer within about an hour while requiring nothing more than gently brushing the surface of the lesion. Oral cancer is one of the fastest-growing causes of early cancer death worldwide. Many people do not notice symptoms until the disease has reached an advanced stage.
Common warning signs include mouth ulcers that do not heal, red or white patches, lumps, or pain that lasts for weeks. Smoking, chewing tobacco, heavy alcohol use, HPV infection, and sun damage to the lips all increase the risk. Early diagnosis gives patients the best chance of successful treatment, yet current testing methods have important drawbacks.
Traditional scalpel biopsies involve removing a piece of tissue from the mouth. While this provides reliable information, it can be uncomfortable and may discourage repeated testing. The researchers wanted to create a test that was both accurate and simple enough to repeat whenever needed.
Their new qMIDS-V3 test analyses the activity of four cancer-related genes from cells collected by a small brush. The team studied over 1,000 samples obtained from 545 patients. They discovered that the brush-based test produced results very similar to those from their earlier microbiopsy method, which required removing a tiny piece of tissue.
The scientists were surprised that cells collected only from the surface of the mouth carried such a strong genetic signal. The findings suggest that doctors could safely avoid invasive biopsies for more than 90% of patients whose suspicious mouth lesions later prove not to be cancer.
The new test may also be especially valuable for people with oral potentially malignant disorders because it allows regular monitoring over months or years without repeated surgery. This could help doctors detect the earliest signs of cancer before symptoms become severe.
The research combines a large patient group with strong validation of an easy-to-use diagnostic tool, making it one of the most promising advances in oral cancer screening in recent years.
The next step will be implementing the test in everyday healthcare and confirming that it improves patient outcomes in real clinical practice. If successful, it could reduce unnecessary biopsies, shorten waiting times, and help many patients receive earlier treatment.
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Source: Queen Mary University of London.
