title: Blood-based testing for colorectal cancer screening.
abstract: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common non-skin cancer diagnosed in men and women in the USA and worldwide. While it has been clearly established that screening for CRC, using a variety of methods, is cost effective and has a significant impact on overall survival, screening rates have proven to be sub-optimal. It has been long conjectured that a simple blood-based test, with a specimen drawn at a routine doctor's office visit, would encourage those individuals who have refused or ignored screening recommendations to undergo screening. This article reviews the currently available blood-based screening tests for CRC, including the ColonSentry™ messenger RNA (mRNA) expression panel and the SEPT9 methylated DNA test, and explores newer biomarkers that are near clinical implementation. Also discussed are additional applications for blood-based CRC testing, such as assessing prognosis, disease surveillance, and expansion of screening tests to high-risk populations, such as the estimated 1.4 million individuals in the USA with inflammatory bowel disease.
authors.affiliation: Oncology Technology Development and Licensing, ARUP Laboratories Inc., 500 Chipeta Way, Mail stop #209, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA, karen.heichman@aruplab.com.
authors.forename: Karen A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Heichman
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D019175:DNA Methylation; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D058112:Septins / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C474315:SEPTIN9 protein, human; D058112:Septins