Hopeful news regarding pancreatic cancer:

[KatyaR]

http://newsok.com/article/3197392/1201330918">Battling 'the most deadly cancer' (registration required)

University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center researchers have found molecules that are present at high levels in pancreatic cancer patients' blood, potentially opening the door to a blood test for the nation's fourth-leading cancer killer. The research appeared in this month's issue of the journal, Pancreas.

If researchers know which biomarkers are unique to early stage pancreatic cancer, they can begin to work on ways to screen for them. One such test now is on the market but is insufficient for early pancreatic cancer diagnosis, said author Jay Hanas, a health sciences center professor of biochemistry and molecular biology.

*snip*

What's next for research?

Now that Hanas has targets, he plans to examine whether the molecules he has discovered are found in the blood of patients with other cancers or unrelated illnesses. He also plans to separate blood samples of pancreatic cancer patients by cancer stage, or severity level, to see if the molecules appear similarly among them.

*snip*

The test will be available within five years, according to a health sciences center news release. The tests could be given to those at risk of developing pancreatic cancer, such as smokers, diabetics and those who have had pancreatitis.

This is great news. It is still a long way from becoming reality, but the possibility is very encouraging.

Dr. Hanas was one of my "neighbors" when I worked at OUHSC a few years ago. I'm happy he's been so successful.