Research offers hope for simpler cancer diagnosis and treatment
Nov. 19, 2018
Monitoring cancer can often be an intrusive and exhausting process for patients. But with BYU chemistry professor Ryan Kelly’s new research, there is hope for a simpler way: No more biopsies. No more spinal taps. Instead, patients may be able to take a simple blood test to diagnose, monitor and tailor appropriate therapies for various cancers.
Creating therapies for cancer patients is greatly enhanced when doctors know about the biochemical makeup of tumors, including what proteins are present and at what levels. For this project, recently published in top-ranked journal Analytical Chemistry, Kelly collaborated with researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Oregon Health & Science University to isolate circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood and determine which proteins were present.