Attention, chocolate lovers: You may not be able to help yourselves. Swiss and British scientists have linked the widespread love of chocolate to a chemical "signature" that may be programmed into our metabolic systems.
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Blood Test Detects Ovarian Cancer
SUNDAY, Aug. 15 (HealthDayNews) -- A test to detect ovarian cancer by identifying three proteins found in the blood of women with the disease has been developed by researchers at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Preliminary studies with this new test suggest that there is a molecular signature exclusive to ovarian cancer, which can remain undetected and spread quickly. The test is described in an article in the Aug. 15 issue of Cancer Research. "By identifying a select group of biomarkers specific to ovarian cancer, we not only know the proteins we are dealing with, but we can trace them back to alterations in the genetic code of ovarian cancer cells," Daniel W. Chan, director of the Biomarker Discovery Center at Johns Hopkins, said in a prepared statement. "We are focusing on the markers for which we have good biological reasoning behind their selection, and hope to expand the panel of markers to catch as many variations in ovarian cancer proteins as possible," he said. More studies are needed before this test may be commercially available for ovarian cancer screening. And Chan noted that no blood test will be able to correctly diagnose 100 percent of cancerous tumors all of the time. "The goal is to come as close as possible to that by using this test in combination with other available diagnostic tools," he said. More information The American Cancer Society has more about ovarian cancer.
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