title: Serum biomarkers for detection of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Detection of hypermethylated circulating tumor DNA has the potential to be a minimally invasive, low cost, and reproducible method for cancer detection.
  
  
  METHODS
  We evaluated serum from 100 patients with known head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and 50 healthy control patients for 3 previously described methylation targets, endothelin receptor type B (EDNRB), cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (CDKN2A or p16), and deleted in colorectal carcinoma (DCC), using quantitative methylation specific polymerase chain reaction (qMSPCR).
  
  
  RESULTS
  EDNRB hypermethylation was identified in the serum of 10% of the patients with HNSCC but in none of the control patients. DCC hypermethylation was detected in 2 serum samples from patients with cancer that also amplified EDNRB and one of these samples also had p16 hypermethylation. EDNRB hypermethylation was statistically significant by Fisher's exact test (p = .03) when comparing HNSCC to controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum EDNRB hypermethylation is a highly specific but not sensitive serum biomarker for HNSCC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Wojciech K
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Mydlarz
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Patrick T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Hennessey
authors.affiliation: Division of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Barretos Cancer Hospital, Barretos, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Andre Lopez
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.|Milton J. Dance Head and Neck Center, Greater Baltimore Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Joseph A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Califano
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16 / Q000097:blood; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D044023:Receptor, Endothelin B / Q000097:blood*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D019941:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16; C000588596:EDNRB protein, human; D044023:Receptor, Endothelin B
keywords: epigenetics; head and neck cancer; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC); hypermethylation; screening