Biomarkers hold promise for early detection of head and neck cancer

New research holds promise for early detection of head and neck cancer using simple testing. The newly developed tests will be able to detect “biomarkers” which are biologic factors found within a tumor. (Chang & Califano, 2008)
Candidate biomarkers for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma include the p53 gene and its protein; microsatellite regions throughout the genome; human papillomavirus; proteins involved in cellular proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, and intracellular adhesion; epithelial growth factor receptor; and various measures of immune response to cancer. (Edwards et al, 2010) Biomarkers many have potential clinical applications because they can facilitate detection of primary or recurrent cancer. These tests can be performed in saliva which is easy to obtain.
However, before these tests are used in actual clinical settings, they have to be carefully validated.