Researchers have unveiled OvaPrint, an innovative blood test that boasts a remarkable 91% accuracy in detecting early-stage ovarian cancer and differentiating between benign and cancerous pelvic masses, surpassing the efficacy of existing tests. This test operates by scrutinizing blood-borne DNA fragmens featuring specific methylation patterns, which serve as valuable biological markers of disease, as methylation can intricately influence gene expression within the body's cells.

OvaPrint Helps Early Molecular Detection

OvaPrint, an early molecular assessment tool, can identify high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) in its nascent stage, a significant improvement over existing screening methods. HGSOC, the most prevalent and deadliest form of ovarian cancer, has historically lacked effective early screening, making it challenging for clinicians to treat when intervention is most successful. Distinguishing between benign and cancerous growths before surgery is complex, making biopsies often unfeasible.

Early detection of ovarian cancer in its early stages can lead to a survival rate of over 90% for five years or more, while detection in advanced stages reduces this to less than 40%, according to Bodour Salhia, co-leader of the Genomic and Epigenomic Regulation Research Program at the University of Southern California.

"If we can accurately identify early-stage ovarian cancer, we can change the outcome of the disease and really crank up survival rates. In addition, the test has the potential to improve treatment, because the surgical approach to removing a pelvic mass differs depending on whether it's benign or not," said Salhia, also an Associate Professor at the Keck School of Medicine at USC.

The researchers focused solely on the HGSOC subtype of ovarian cancer in their study, which was published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, rather than examining all subtypes at the same time. They collected over 370 tissue and blood samples for analysis, comparing samples from patients with early-stage ovarian cancer to those from people with normal ovaries or benign tumors.