George Kumar, Senior Director at AstraZeneca, shared on LinkedIn about a recent paper by Alexander H. Pearlman et al. published on Cancer Discovery:
“Test Detects Brain Cancers in Cerebrospinal Fluid with High Accuracy
Researchers at Johns Hopkins have developed a new, multi-analyte test called CSF-BAM that can accurately detect brain cancers from small samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The findings, published in Cancer Discovery, show that combining multiple biological markers is more effective for diagnosis than using any single one.
How the Test Works
The CSF-BAM test analyzes three key markers in CSF:
- Chromosomal abnormalities (aneuploidy)
- Tumor-specific mutations
- T and B cell receptor sequences
By combining these markers, the test was able to identify brain cancers with over 80% sensitivity and 100% specificity in the study, meaning it correctly identified all cancer-free individuals.
Why This Matters
This new test could offer a less invasive alternative to traditional biopsy procedures, which are often risky for patients with brain lesions. According to the researchers, the test could be especially useful for cases where imaging results are unclear or a biopsy is not feasible. The ability to analyze immune cell populations also provides valuable insights into the disease and could help clinicians make more informed decisions about patient care.
Detection of human brain cancers using genomic and immune cell characterization of cerebrospinal fluid through CSF-BAM Available to Purchase.”
Title: Detection of human brain cancers using genomic and immune cell characterization of cerebrospinal fluid through CSF-BAM
Authors: Alexander H. Pearlman, Yuxuan Wang, Anita Kalluri, Megan Parker, Joshua D. Cohen, Jonathan Dudley, Jordina Rincon-Torroella, Yuanxuan Xia, Ryan Gensler, Melanie Alfonzo Horowitz, John N. Theodore, Lisa Dobbyn, Maria Popoli, Janine Ptak, Natalie Silliman, Kathy Judge, Peter A. Calabresi, Mari Groves, Christopher M. Jackson, Eric M. Jackson, George I Jallo, Michael Lim, Mark Luciano, Debraj Mukherjee, Jarushka Naidoo, Sima Rozati, Cole H. Sterling, Jon Weingart, Carl Koschmann, Alireza Mansouri, Michael Glantz, David Kamson, Karisa C. Schreck, Carlos A. Pardo, Matthias Holdhoff, Maximilian F. Konig, Suman Paul, Kenneth W. Kinzler, Nickolas Papadopoulos, Bert Vogelstein, Christopher Douville, Chetan Bettegowda.
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