Dundee University researchers believe they have made a major breakthrough in the battle against skin cancer using a “simple” blood test.
Scientists say the blood test could be used to identify patients whose melanoma the most serious form of skin cancer has started to spread to other parts of the body.
The researchers examined DNA shed from tumour cells into the bloodstream, looking at a single gene called TFP12.
Their research was presented at the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Cancer Conference in Liverpool today.
Dr Tim Crook, study author and a consultant medical oncologist at Dundee University, said: “Once melanoma starts to spread it becomes far more difficult to treat. But actually detecting whether or not it has started to spread is also challenging.
“By using a blood test, we have the basis of a simple and accurate way of discovering how advanced the disease is, as well as an early warning sign of whether it has started to spread.
“This would give doctors and patients important information much sooner than is possible at the moment.
“There’s increasing evidence that the latest treatments are more effective in these early stages and, if we can identify patients whose cancer has only just started to spread, this would significantly improve the chances of beating the disease.”