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Non-invasive, low-cost method to test for oral cancer developed

2 mins read Oral health and mouth cancer
A team of researchers, led by a clinician scientist at the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine, has discovered a non-invasive, low-cost test to detect oral cancer, monitor precancerous lesions and determine when a biopsy is warranted.

Oral cancers and precancerous mouth lesions are considered especially difficult to diagnose early and accurately.

For one, biopsies are expensive, invasive, stressful for the patient and can lead to complications. They’re also not feasible if repeated screenings of the same lesion are required.

Case Western Reserve University’s findings, published online on March 4, 2024, in the journal Cell Reports Medicine, are based on a scoring system linked to the levels of two proteins in cells brushed from suspicious oral lesions of patients at dental clinics or the ear, nose and throat department at University Hospitals (UH).

One of the proteins (human beta defensin 3 or hBD-3) is expressed at high levels in early-stage oral cancer, while the second (hBD-2) is low or unchanged.

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